Stars right side up down under

Oops. It is said that confession is good for the soul, but bad for the reputation. Well, I must confess to an oops. I can't seem to keep track of what I am writing.

Last week I sent the What's Up column to the newspaper, only it was the copy that was meant for the astronomy blog I write for in Australia. Yep. Oz; Down Under.

That is why when it said down it should have said up. In case you were not aware, when the folks in the southern hemisphere look at Orion, he is upside down to them from the way we see him.

Sorry for the confusion, most of which was on my part.

Our tour this week takes us to the final star in the Winter Circle, or Hexagon -- Procyon, one of only two easily visible stars in the constellation Canis Minor, the Little Dog. The name Procyon means "Before the Dog" because it rises in the early evening winter sky before Sirius, the Dog Star in Canis Major.

It is the 19th closest star to Earth located 11 light years away and eighth brightest star in the night sky.

Procyon is a double star but the companion is a white dwarf and because of Procyon's brightness the secondary is difficult to see.

To locate Procyon go to Pollux in Gemini where we were last week, and draw a line down and right to Sirius. About one-third of the way along that line from Pollux and a little below is bright Procyon.

Procyon is part of another stellar asterism, or star pattern, the Winter Triangle. Just as summer has a triangle, so does winter. The three stars in this grouping are Procyon, Sirius and Betelgeuse, the reddish right shoulder star of Orion.

Speaking of Sirius, Mars and Sirius are still rising somewhat together in the eastern and southeastern sky. If you look southeast at about 7 p.m. MST, bright Sirius will be sparkling away. Over to the left above the eastern horizon Mars is now just a little above being level with Sirius.

Our sister planet is still lounging just three degrees above M44, the Beehive star cluster. A pair of binoculars will give you a fine view.

To complete our circle, or hexagon, trip return to Sirius where we started.

SKY WATCH:

New moon on Feb. 13. If you want a binocular challenge head out a half-hour to 45-minutes after sunset and look west. It will be best to have a totally unobstructed horizon, perhaps better to observing from a hilltop. Very close to the horizon, one or two degrees (your fingertip held at arms length), use your binoculars to scan for Jupiter and Venus. Watch beginning the evening of Sunday, Feb 14 through Feb. 16. They will be at their closest on the 16th.

NEXT TIME:

Did someone say they were anxious for spring? And more astronomical blathering.