Earth Sky – by Bruce McClureTonight – February 3, 2015 – no matter where you are on Earth, look eastward as soon as darkness falls. The full moon and the dazzling planet Jupiter will couple up together just above the eastern horizon at nightfall. Think photo opportunity!
In North America, we call the February full moon the Wolf Moon, Snow Moon or Hunger Moon. Watch as this February full moon climbs upward with Jupiter throughout the evening hours. The brilliant twosome will reach its high point for the night around midnight, and will descend westward in the wee hours after midnight.
If you’re up early tomorrow, on February 4, look for the moon and Jupiter over the western horizon in the predawn/dawn sky. If you get a good photo, post it at EarthSky Facebook or submit your photo here.
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Incidentally, that star trailing the moon and Jupiter across the sky tonight is Regulus, the brightest in the constellation Leo the Lion. You’ll see this star below the moon and Jupiter in the early evening hours, on February 3.
Then, in the wee hours of the morning on February 4, you’ll see Regulus above the moon and Jupiter. Throughout this night, as Earth spins beneath the sky carrying the moon and Jupiter westward, the moon is slowly but surely moving in its orbit around Earth, coming closer to Regulus all the while as seen on our sky’s dome. By the time night falls again on the evening of February 4, the moon will have moved so far in its orbit that you’ll see the moon partnering up with Regulus instead of Jupiter in our sky.
The moon will look full all night long tonight. However, astronomers regard the moon as full for only a fleeting instant – at the moment that the moon is most directly opposite the sun for the month. This full moon moment will happen on February 3, 2015, at 23:09 Universal Time.
Although the moon turns full at the same instant worldwide, the clock times differ around the world. At our U.S. time zones, the moon turns full on February 3 at 6:09 p.m. EST, 5:09 p.m. CST, 4:09 p.m. MST or 3:09 p.m. PST.
Bottom line: Don’t miss out on the great sky show on the night of February 3-4, 2015, as the February full moon and the dazzling planet Jupiter light up the nighttime from dusk until dawn!
I’m sure the rusty rainbow looking chemtrail ring around the moon will enhance the brightness of Jupiter. 😉