Speaker 1: I'm Doctor Sky and welcome to the Doctor Sky Experience
Speaker 1: here on the iconic radio station Talk Radio seventy seven
Speaker 1: WABC out of New York and around the world, America's
Speaker 1: iconic radio station, with the Doctor Sky Experience. Episode number
Speaker 1: nine of our Doctor Sky Sky Update as we begin
Speaker 1: Moth number twelve, December twenty twenty two. For more information
Speaker 1: on the topics that you hear within this particular podcast,
Speaker 1: check the Doctor Sky Blog at WABC radio dot com.
Speaker 1: As we move into month number twelve, the fascinating event
Speaker 1: happening for much of the listening audience around the nation.
Speaker 1: That happens to appear on an event that will take
Speaker 1: place on Wednesday, December the seventh, as the full cold
Speaker 1: moon does something quite unusual. The full moon every month
Speaker 1: is quite beautiful to watch, romantic and also fascinating to
Speaker 1: sea for photographers, for those out there that are artists
Speaker 1: and simply those that just luck well to look in
Speaker 1: the nighttime sky. But on this particular night of Wednesday,
Speaker 1: December the seventh, as the moon rises well into the
Speaker 1: northeastern part of the sky, unmistakably bright object to the
Speaker 1: left edge of the moon is the red God of War,
Speaker 1: the planet Mars, and for a good portion of the
Speaker 1: United States and North America and even Europe, something unusual
Speaker 1: will happen. The left edge of the Moon will encroach
Speaker 1: upon the iron planet Mars and it will eclipse it.
Speaker 1: We call that an astronomy and occultation. What you should
Speaker 1: do is check times for this particular event by scouring
Speaker 1: the internet and checking our blog at WABC radio dot
Speaker 1: com the Doctor Skyblog with information on this very unusual event.
Speaker 1: What will be happening. The full cold Moon that will
Speaker 1: be some two hundred and forty eight thousand miles away
Speaker 1: from the Earth will be eclipsing for about an hour
Speaker 1: for a good portion of North America. The Red God
Speaker 1: of War that's now a little more than fifty million
Speaker 1: miles away. And did you know that the planet Mars
Speaker 1: itself reaches opposition that is rising at sunset and is
Speaker 1: in our skies all night on the evening of December
Speaker 1: the eighth this week of Mars, as Mars was closest
Speaker 1: to us for this year on December the first. Don't
Speaker 1: miss it. It's a fantastic event. Naked eye observers will
Speaker 1: take a thrill for this, and also people with binoculars
Speaker 1: and telescopes will have the best of ringside scenes. What
Speaker 1: other things are happening in the month of December, don't forget,
Speaker 1: we're now moving upward. It's upticking a meteor shower known
Speaker 1: as the Geminids, which will peak during the early morning
Speaker 1: hours of December the fourteenth, and that if you look
Speaker 1: into the northeastern sky, can sometimes be a really good sight.
Speaker 1: The Geminids are known for some fast and slow moving
Speaker 1: meteors and some fireballs to boot, So this is a
Speaker 1: good time to get out there and take a look,
Speaker 1: and one of nature's most awesome sights, that is looking
Speaker 1: for meteors during meteor shower season, which is taking place
Speaker 1: right now. And for planets, don't forget during this particular
Speaker 1: season when many are wondering about the true nature of
Speaker 1: the Star of Bethlehem, it was that magical alignment? Was
Speaker 1: it planets? Was it a supernova that herald in the
Speaker 1: location of the birth of the Christ Child. We'll be
Speaker 1: talking about that in great detail in future Doctor Sky updates.
Speaker 1: Here on the Doctor Sky experience with our Doctor Sky
Speaker 1: Sky updates. But for planets, toward the end of the
Speaker 1: month of December, two new planets welcome themselves into the
Speaker 1: early evening sky. The planet Mercury and the planet Venus
Speaker 1: will slowly encroach into the west southwest just after sunset,
Speaker 1: the planet Saturn still high and visible to the naked eye.
Speaker 1: In the south. To the left along the zodiac path,
Speaker 1: we come across Jupiter, brilliant, easy to see in the
Speaker 1: telescope and binoculars. To view some of the beautiful moons
Speaker 1: that Jupiter shows us, I owe Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto,
Speaker 1: and also the showstopper of the month, as I just mentioned,
Speaker 1: the planet Mars. In a telescope, you'll be able to
Speaker 1: see the north polar cap in the magnification of about
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifty times that of the eye, and
Speaker 1: also some of the surface features. But don't forget once more.
Speaker 1: In summery on Wednesday, December the seventh, for a good
Speaker 1: portion of North America, you get to see a rare
Speaker 1: ocultation as the planet Mars is eclipsed by the full moon,
Speaker 1: and in other locations it will be what we call
Speaker 1: a grazing ocultation, meaning the planet Mars will skirt along
Speaker 1: the lower edge of the Moon and bounce in between
Speaker 1: the mountains of the moon if you have a telescope,
Speaker 1: this and all these great things happening in our sky,
Speaker 1: and we thank you once again as we wish you
Speaker 1: and yours the best for a most joyous holiday season,
Speaker 1: a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, and a healthy and
Speaker 1: prosperous twenty twenty three. I'm Doctor Sky, your navigator on
Speaker 1: the highway to the heavens, always reminded to keep your
Speaker 1: eyes to the skies. Email us. We love that Doctor
Speaker 1: Sky show.