Heavenly bodies playing tag

The conjunctions during the first few days of January involving Jupiter, tiny Mercury, bright Venus and the moon were magnificent! All of those heavenly bodies played tag in the early evening hours just after sunset.

The only ones left from that dance now are Venus, found very high in the southwest, and perhaps, if you have a very clear horizon and look about a half hour after sunset, Mercury riding very low. Look quick because Mercury won't last long after sunset.

Jupiter has left the evening sky and won't be seen until next spring when it will be seen rising in the early morning darkness. In fact, circle March 22 for a close grouping of the Moon, Jupiter, and Neptune. Then in May the early morning crowd can enjoy the moon, Venus, Uranus and the long absent Mars.

Well troops, there is good news and bad news for eclipse watchers in 2009. First the good news, there will be four lunar eclipses during the year. The bad news, none of them will be very visible. Yes, I know, bummer.

Seems that all four will be penumbral eclipses. Penumbral means the moon will pass through only the extreme outer edge of Earth's shadow. That shadow is not dark enough to dim the moon to any appreciable degree.

The first of the four, if visible at all, will be on Monday, Feb. 9, with the best visibility being in the midwestern and western U.S. at moonset which will be early in the morning.

Speaking of eclipses, there will be an annular solar eclipse on Jan. 26. An annular eclipse is where the moon covers only a part of the solar disk, leaving a ring of light around the edge. Alas for us local folks, the eclipse will be visible only in the southern Indian and extreme eastern Pacific Oceans.

If you are an eclipse watcher like me, circle the date of Aug. 21, 2017 on your calendar. That is when there will be a total solar eclipse for which we here in central and Southwest Nebraska will have a ring-side seat.

I know, that may seem a long way off, but the path of totality will pass right over Grand Island, so we won't have to travel half a world away to see it. Here in Southwest Nebraska and Northeast Kansas we will have about 90 percent coverage if you don't want to travel east for the big show.

Even though we are in the midst of winter's grip, the Sun is spending more time above the horizon. Just since the first of January the sun is rising two minutes earlier and setting 13 minutes later in the evening. A net gain of 15 more minutes of daylight. If you are watching, the sun is slowly creeping further north along the horizon.

Here is a fun event for you, the Summer Triangle -- Deneb in Cygnus the Swan, Vega in Lyra the harp, and Altair in Aquila, the Eagle -- are setting in the west just after sunset. Just for grins and giggles, catch the trio after sunset then be out about an hour before sunrise and catch them again, this time in the eastern sky.

SKY WATCH: Third quarter moon on Saturday. The pair will be about 6 degrees (a little more than the width of your clenched fist held at arms length) apart with the planet being to the upper left of the moon. Look just above them for the constellation Leo, the Lion.

Next time: more astronomical blathering.