GARDEN ROUTE | KAROO NEWS - The month starts with a waxing, gibbous Moon that becomes full on 8 December. The new Moon is on Christmas Eve.
December is also the time we have the Summer Solstice, which this year falls on the 21st. It is of course the longest day of the year, but not the time of earliest sunrise and latest sunset - these occur on 6 December and 7 January respectively.
The reason for this is that Earth does not travel at a constant speed around the Sun, since its orbit is an ellipse. Our watches run according to an "averaged out" time so there will be a slight difference between sun-time and watch-time!
The difference is known as the Equation of Time and can be as much as 16 minutes.
Scorpio has left our western evening sky and the constellation of Orion is now beginning to dominate the eastern sky after sunset. For the Tswana, the stars of Orion's sword were "dintsa le Dikolobe", three dogs chasing the three pigs of Orion's belt.
Warthogs have their litters while Orion is prominent in the sky; frequently litters of three. I find this a little easier to visualise as I find it hard to see the Hunter - especially as he is upside down in the Southern Hemisphere and his dagger points upwards!
For our northern visitors, this and the Southern Cross are must sees!
Then at around 21:30, if the line from the Orion belt stars is extended to the lower left, you have the Hyades cluster, with the reddish star Aldebaran at the bottom right, followed by the small bright cluster of isiLimela (Pleiades) and eventually there is a small fuzzy patch, low above the northern horizon.
This is the Milky Way's twin, the Andromeda galaxy, the remotest object visible to the naked eye (2,3 million light years away), with the Great Square of Pegasus to the upper left.
It is also a good time to see the other geometrical figure, the Great Southern Triangle. This is formed by the red supergiant star Betelgeuse at the lower end of Orion, Sirius or the Dog Star (the brightest star in the night sky) to the upper right, and finally Procyon, the little Dog Star low above the horizon. See sketch.
Away from city lights this is also a good time to see two other naked-eye galaxies. High up in the south are the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, (LMC and SMC). They will appear as two fuzzy patches or small clouds, with the LMC to the lower left of the much smaller SMC.
Below these, just above the southern horizon, the Southern Cross and the Pointers are living up to their Venda name of "Thutlwa", the Giraffe Stars, as they are very low above the southern horizon, and appear to be grazing the top of the trees!
After sunset, over the Christmas season (22nd to 31st) there is an interesting interplay between the two minor planets Mercury and Venus, the latter being the brighter of the two and just below Mercury. On the 24th a waxing crescent Moon joins the pair.
The following evenings see the two planets move closer together and by the 29th they are next to each other. Year's end sees Venus above Mercury.
The Sky Guide Africa South is now available from most good booksellers, and is the ideal Christmas present for readers with an interest in the night skies of southern Africa. I find it indispensable and a copy travels with me wherever I go.
Happy solstice, have a safe and festive Christmas and may 2023 be everything you wish it to be.
The image of the Pillars of Creation was made famous by the Hubble Space Telescope. This recent image is from the James Webb Telescope and shows the stellar nursery in greater detail and depth than ever before.
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