After a year that won’t soon be forgotten, of course I’m talking about the pandemic, there are a number of celestial events occurring this December that should peak your interest and get you out of the house in the cold morning or night air.

A pair of meteor showers, a pair of conjunctions (one of which will be epic), the December Solstice and a total solar eclipse for sky watchers in South America all happening in December. Throw in Christmas and New Year’s Eve and you have a busy month to be sure. So let’s run them down in a little more detail.

Venus & The Moon – Saturday morning, December 12th: If you’re up early be sure to step outside and enjoy the brilliant planet Venus very close to a thin crescent Moon low in the southeast.  This should make for a great photo opportunity during the 6 a.m. hour here in the DFW area. But don’t be late as our local star peeks above the horizon and washes out the pair shortly thereafter.

The Geminids – Sunday night/Monday morning, December 13/14: The Geminids are a major shower and are sure to please this year with the Moon safely out of the way. This would be the perfect opportunity to head to dark rural skies, snuggle with someone important and stay up late under the stars with coffee or hot chocolate to watch the Geminids fly. The Geminid meteors are fast movers and usually glow with a yellow hue. Look for up to 120 meteors per hour at the peak. Celestial fireworks to usher out what many feel is the worst year in recent memory. But wait, there’s more!

Total Solar Eclipse – Monday, December 14:  One of natures greatest spectacles, a total solar eclipse will be visible for viewers in far South America on this day. This total solar eclipse is visible from Chile and some parts of Argentina in the afternoon. Some regions in southern South America, south-west Africa, and Antarctica will see a partial solar eclipse.

Great Jupiter & Saturn Conjunction / Solstice – December 21st: Conjunctions of planets and the Moon are not an unusual thing. In fact, they tend to happen frequently but this December there will be a “must see” conjunction. The “king of the planets” and “the ringed planet” have been converging in our night sky for weeks, and it all culminates on December 21st when Jupiter and Saturn will be separated by just 0.1 degrees of sky. These two planets have not been this close together from our perspective for 400 years. Ironically, it was about that time 400 years ago that Galileo Galilei used a crude telescope to discover the four major moons of Jupiter (Io, Europa, Callisto and Ganymede) . Those four large moons are to this day referred to as the “Galilean moons” of Jupiter.

Observing notes: To the naked eye these planets will appear to converge into one object so be sure to setup your telescope or join a friend with a scope to get the best view. A telescope will reveal both planets and numerous moons in the same field of view. A staggering planetary sight to be sure! Importantly, you will want to act fast because this conjunction will occur very low on the southwestern horizon after sunset. So ensure that you have a good unobstructed view of the SW horizon and get setup before nightfall in order to maximize your short observing window as these planets will set by 7:15 p.m. On that same date December 21st marks the Winter Solstice for those in the Northern Hemisphere. Solstice which is Latin for “Sun stands still” is the instant in time when the Sun reaches it’s farthest point South of the equator.  The DFW area experiences the solstice at  4:03 a.m. CST on the 21st.

On the Winter Solstice the daylight hours are at their minimum. This point also corresponds to the beginning of the season we call Winter. The opposite is true for those in the Southern Hemisphere where Summer starts down under. The good news for us northern hemisphere dwellers is from the Winter solstice forward the days (or more accurately, the daylight hours) begin to grow longer. You’ll often hear it said that the December “solstice is the shortest day of the year” but the reality is the length of the day remains 24 hours, if it didn’t we’d all be in trouble, but the amount of daylight in that 24 hour period is just reduced due to the tilt of the Earth on its axis.

Ursid Meteor Shower – December 22nd: The Ursid meteor shower runs from December 17 to 26 each year and always peaks around the December Solstice. The Ursids are associated with comet 8P/Tuttle and the shower’s radiant is located in the northern part of the sky very close to the bowl of the “little dipper” in Ursa Minor. This year the peak happens on the morning of December 22nd. The Moon will be high in the sky as it works toward first quarter. This will not help your efforts to view the Ursids but the shower’s radiant is in the opposite part of the sky so it still might be worth keeping the Moon at your back as you scan the northern half of the sky for meteors. Observers who brave the cold can expect to see 5-10 meteors per hour with this shower.

So get out under the bright winter stars this month and take in as many of these fantastic celestial sights as you can.

Clear skies,

Scott