Night Skies - November

Fred Barrett | Nov 01, 2019

This month we have the annual Leonid meteor shower gracing our skies.  This shower peaks near dawn on November the 18th but is active from about November 6th to the 30th.  Start actively watching after the 6th and you’ll note that their numbers slowly increase to the peak on the night of 17/18.  The shower radiant is a little to the right (westwards) of the very bright star Regulus.  The radiant is the source direction of debris that plows into the Earth from the Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle that has been slowly disintegrating over many thousands of years.  The constellation of Leo the Lion rises up low on the eastern horizon about 1 am at the start of November. It rises higher as the night progresses and by dawn it is about 60 degrees high in the southeast.  Don’t forget that the radiant doesn’t have to be in the sky to see plenty of meteors.  Meteors can be seen all over the sky but if you trace their paths back to where they originate, you will discover that they all point back to the radiant.  This year’s shower should average about 15 meteors per hour. Unfortunately the brightness of a waning gibbous Moon will hinder seeing some of the fainter meteors.  The best viewing is in the early hours of the morning.  Get up early or have a look when you’re leaving for work.  The Leonid debris is very fast moving with more fireballs than most showers. I promise you that if you catch sight of a fireball, it will be etched in your memory for years to come.

Look low in the southwest about 30 minutes after the Sun sets in early November and Venus will demand your attention.  Start you’re observing about the 14th and you’ll notice that the gap between bright Jupiter and Venus, about 10 degrees, will appear to be getting smaller by about 1 degree every night.  On the evenings of the 23rd and 24th, they will be separated by only a degree and a half.  On the 28th, about an hour after sunset, a sliver of a crescent Moon will join the pair.  It will make for a stunning display.  Don’t forget that Jupiter in early November will provide a worthy object to view in a modest telescope – great atmospheric detail.  Binoculars will let you watch the nightly change in the positions of its 4 main moons. In the south southwest about 25 degrees high, you will find Saturn near the constellation Sagittarius.   The best observing for this planet is soon after sunset.  The rings will have a nice large tilt and offer an ideal display.  A 4 to 6 inch reflector would be ideal not only to see the rings but also 3 of its closest moons.

A rare highlight for more experienced amateur astronomers this month is a rare transit of the Sun by Mercury on the 11th.  A special solar filter to block out the Sun’s eye damaging light is an absolute necessity.  The transit takes 5 hours and 29 minutes and begins about 7:35 am.  I suggest contacting the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) website to find out where and when public viewing may be offered.  Links to the Kingston chapter of the RASC can be found on the website as well.

For those of you who wish to stay on the same space/time continuum as the rest of us don’t forget that 2 am EST on Sunday the 3rd marks the end of daylight savings time.  Clocks go back 1 hour.  The best time to adjust your clocks is when you go to bed.  Forget the change and your friends will target you mercilessly!

Highlight of November: 2nd:  The Moon passes a half degree south of Saturn. 4th:  First quarter Moon. 7th:  the Moon as at apogee – furthest at 402,700 Kms. 11th:  Mercury transits the Sun. 12:  Full Moon.  This is called the Full Beaver Moon.  It was time to set beaver traps before the ponds froze up.  For us in the present, you better get your woolies, coats and long johns out!  I wonder why they’re called ‘long johns’?  Are there any ‘short johns’?  I digress. 17th:  Leonid meteor shower peaks. 19th:  Last quarter Moon. 23rd:  The Moon is at perigee – closest at 364,590 Kms. 26th:  New Moon.

Get those binoculars out or just shine up your eyeballs.  There’s plenty going on for everyone. And maybe hot chocolate after to drive away some crisp fall shivers. Keep looking up! 

“The Beginner’s Observing Guide by Leo Enright is an invaluable companion for adventures in the sky.  It also contains useful star charts.  It can be ordered from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada at www.rasc.ca/publications.  A subscription to our very own excellent Canadian astronomy magazine “SkyNews” can be arranged at the RASC website as well.

Let me know how your observing has gone this month, especially anything unusual.  I enjoy the feedback.  If you have any questions or suggestions you can contact me through this paper or email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  Clear Skies!  Fred.