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Star Map Jan 2016
Star Map Jan 2016
January 2016
CEPHEUS
A map for each month of the year, to help you learn about the night sky
www.sydneyobservatory.com.au
CAMELOPARDALIS
The star chart shows the stars and constellations visible in the night sky for Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and Adelaide
for January 2015 at about 8:30 pm (summer time) and at about 7:30 pm (local standard time) for Perth and Brisbane. For
Darwin and similar locations the chart will still apply, but some stars will be lost off the southern edge while extra stars will be
visible to the north. Stars down to a brightness or magnitude limit of 4.5 are shown on the star chart. To use this star chart,
rotate the chart so that the direction you are facing (north, south, east or west)
is shown at the bottom. The centre of the chart
CASSIOPEIA
represents the point directly above your head, called the zenith point, and the outer circular edge represents the horizon.
North
Star Brightness
Moon Phase
Last quarter: 02nd
New Moon: 10th
LACERTA
First quarter: 17th
Full Moon: 24th
LYNX
Zero or brighter
1st magnitude
2nd
3rd
4th
Capella
AURIGA
NW
PERSEUS
NE
ANDROMEDA
TRIANGULUM
M45 (Pleiades or
Seven Sisters)
Pollux
TAURUS First quarter
Aldebaran Moon on 27th
GEMINI
ARIES
PEGASUS
PISCES
Betelgeuse
ORION
CANIS MINOR
M42
Procyon
Rigel
CETUS
EQUULEUS
ERIDANUS
MONOCEROS
AQUARIUS
East
LEPUS
West
Sirius
FORNAX
Sirius
CANIS MAJOR
SCULPTOR
ERIDANUS
Fomalhaut
COLUMBA CAELUM
Adhara
PUPPIS
PISCIS AUSTRINUS
PHOENIX
HOROLOGIUM
PICTOR
CAPRICORNUS
Achernar
GRUS
RETICULUM
Canopus
DORADO
PYXIS
TUCANA
LMC
MICROSCOPIUM
HYDRUS
SMC
INDUS
MENSA
FALSE CROSS
VOLANS
CARINA
HYDRA
OCTANS
VELA
PAVO
CHAMAELEON
ANTLIA
SCORPIUS
SAGITTARIUS
TELESCOPIUM
SE
Chart Key
SOUTHERN CROSS
MUSCA
Bright star
Faint star
Ecliptic
Milky Way
P Planet
LMC or Large Magellanic Cloud
SMC or Small Magellanic Cloud
CRUX
Mimosa
Hadar
APUS
SW
CORONA AUSTRALIS
POINTERS
TRIANGULUM AUSTRALE
ARA
Alpha Centauri
CIRCINUS
South
CENTAURUS
NORMA
SCORPIUS
The best time to view the Moon using binoculars or a small telescope is a few days either side of its first quarter phase, which
falls on the 17th of this month. At this time, the light from the sun casts greatly contrasting shadows along the illuminated and
non-illuminated parts of the moon. The two brightest stars in the night LUPUS
sky can be found easily throughout the month; Sirius in
the constellation Canis Major is the brightest star followed by the star Canopus in Carina. The constellation Carina (the keel)
can be joined with Vela (the sails) and Puppis (the deck) to form the great ship Argo, which Jason and the Argonauts sailed
Antares Cross), is located low
upon in their search for the Golden Fleece, according to the ancient Greek mythology. Crux (the Southern
in the south and can be difficult to find at this time of year.
Sydney Observatory, with a magnificent view overlooking Sydney Harbour, is open 10am to
5pm daily except closed Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, and open 10am to
noon on New Years Eve. Open Monday to Saturday for night sessions (times vary depending
on the season) for sky viewing through one of our telescopes (cosy planetarium session if
cloudy), and 3D movies about the Universe. Bookings are essential for night programs.
For more information, check the website at www.sydneyobservatory.com.au or call (02) 9921
3485. Sydney Observatory is at 1003 Upper Fort Street, Observatory Hill, in the historic Rocks
area of Sydney.
Sydney Observatory is part of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences. The Sydney Observatory night sky map was created by Dr M Anderson using the
TheSky software. This months edition was prepared by Brenan Dew 2016 Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney.