January in 2021 will bring a meteor shower low on the horizon, Mercury, at its highest point above the horizon and a conjunction between Mars and the moon. The latter events can be witnessed in any suburban environment, while the meteor shower requires a little more effort to see.
The new year starts off with the
Quadrantids Meteor Shower. This is a fairly unique meteor shower because it only lasts for 5 days from January 1 to 5, with the peak lasting for only 8 hours. This is because the dust cloud, possibly left by minor planet 2003 EH, is very narrow. Typically this meteor shower has about 40 shooting stars an hour but can have up to 2 per minute.
Image of a Quadrantids shooting star courtesy of Tom Lee @ Flickr
Unfortunately in Australia, the radiant point is mostly below the horizon at night on the peak viewing morning of January 4. But as the shooting stars spread out widely, it is possible to still see shooting stars rising up from the horizon to the North East in Australia, especially as dawn approaches.
So get up early for this one. To see shooting stars, you need to be in a dark place, far from the urban and suburban light pollution. Unfortunately, the moon will still be up, but over on the other side of the sky as the dawn approaches, so you will miss out on the fainter shooting stars, but you should be lucky enough to see some of the brighter ones. Because you are looking towards the horizon, spots with a higher vantage point with a clear view of the northeast are best. Remember, the further north you are, the more shooting stars you will see, so this is great for people in Darwin, and less good for people in the Apple Isle.
There will be a
Conjunction of the Moon and Mars on January 21. Look for the red star near the moon from sunset until mars and the moon set a bit after midnight. The best time to look is just after sunset, as you will see Mars before the other stars become visible. Mars will also be easily seen near the moon on the days before and after the conjunction.
Image of a half moon and Mars in conjunction courtesy of Image of a Quadrantids shooting star courtesy of Roger Gerbig @ Flickr
On January 24, Mercury will be at the its
Greatest Eastern Elongation. Mercury orbits between the Earth and the sun, so very often, it is not visible because it is either on the other side of the sun or it is in the sky during the day when we can't see it. During the Eastern Elongation, it will be 18.6 degrees away from the sun and can be seen in the western sky near the horizon just after sunset. Of course, you don't have to wait until January 24 to look for Mercury, and it should be easily viewable from January 10 through to February 6 as long as you have a clear view of the western horizon.
Look to the western sky at sunset to see Mercury
The
full moon will be on January 29. While it is not a supermoon, there are still plenty of full moon activities you can plan, such as romantic walks on the beach, night hiking under the moon, booking restaurants with a view over the water and so on. The moon rises in the early evening, a little after sunset.
General guide for amateur and family astronomy
Learning about the night sky and planets can be something anyone can do and has been something humans and probably pre-humans have always done. You can start your kids early on Astronomy, and I have memories of lying on the grass looking at the stars from when I was as young as 3.
Astronomy is much more accessible now, as you can easily get a night sky app on your phone. I use Sky Map but it is just one of many similar apps. Just point your phone at the sky and it will show you what you should be seeing.
There are also many amateur astronomy clubs around Australia. They often hold public meetings and you can have the chance to look through some decent telescopes at the sky. January, of course, will be a nice time to look at Mercury through a telescope.
Image of amateur telescopes courtesy of Jean-Pierre Bovin @ Flickr
Let's not forget the various professional telescopes dotted around cities and towns. Sydney Observatory is a great historical location to visit for fans of astronomy, with both old and modern telescopes. But there are many others in universities, dedicated observatories and other places. Most of these places will provide tours and information from experts.
You don't have to wait for astronomical events to look at the night sky. Just camping out at night or lying on a beach where urban light is blocked, means you can see the milky way and often catch a few shooting stars going by. The universe is always up there, even if we can't see it at the moment.
The universe is always up there
Remember, we have to realise that we are not always going to be able to see what we want to see. There are the frustrations of rain, cloud and the best stuff seeming to happen on a weeknight when you are busy at work, and so you can't stay up half the night gazing at the stars. Then sometimes if you miss the event, you have to wait for next year, or sometimes, 800 years, for it to occur again.
