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The Sky This Week, May 9-15

“The Sky This Week” appears regularly. It is written by Ian Clarke, Director of the Hatter Planetarium at Gettysburg College.  The planetarium offers regular educational presentations about the stars and the skies; there’s something for early elementary through adults. Public shows have concluded for the academic year, but we are still accepting field trip requests for the summer!

This week let’s take a final look back at the bright stars of winter, which are now lingering in the west after sunset with a couple of planets. By far the brightest object in that part of the sky this week is the planet Venus. On either side are Procyon and Capella, both members of the “Winter Hexagon” star group. Below and left is Betelgeuse in Orion, and farther left and very close to setting is Sirius. Above Venus, you can find the star Pollux and the planet Mars. While both Mars and Venus are planets Mars is currently much fainter because it is farther away. You should still be able to notice its reddish color, especially compared to Venus and Pollux. Betelgeuse, on the other hand, does look orange-red, comparable to the color of Mars. Mars, the planet, gets its color from iron oxide on its surface, while Betelgeuse, the star, gets its color from its temperature and chemical composition.

may9 15
Ian Clarke1
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Ian Clarke is the director of the Hatter Planetarium at Gettysburg College. In addition he has taught introductory astronomy labs and first-year writing there for over 30 years (not necessarily all at the same time). He was educated at Biglerville High School, the University of Virginia, and the University of Iowa. He lives in Gettysburg.

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