Sky and Telescope - January 2016 - 44

OBSERVING

Planetary Almanac
Sun and Planets, January 2016

Mercury

January

Venus

-26.8

32′ 32″

-

0.983

31

-17° 39′

-

-26.8

32′ 28″

-

0.985

1

20h 05.5m

-21° 06′

19° Ev

-0.4

7.3″

49%

0.921

11

19h 58.4m

-18° 29′

8° Ev

+3.1

9.6″

6%

0.698

21

19h 09.6m

-19° 03′

14° Mo

+1.7

9.6″

14%

0.702

31

19h 09.4m

-20° 31′

24° Mo

0.0

7.7″

46%

0.868

1

16h 00.6m

-18° 34′

38° Mo

-4.0

14.3″

77%

1.166

11

16h 51.5m

-20° 51′

36° Mo

-4.0

13.6″

80%

1.228

21

17h 43.9m

-22° 10′

34° Mo

-4.0

13.0″

83%

1.288

31

18h 37.1m

-22° 25′

32° Mo

-3.9

12.4″

85%

1.344

1

13h 47.5m

-9° 29′

71° Mo

+1.3

5.6″

91%

1.684

16

14h 18.7m

-12° 16′

79° Mo

+1.1

6.1″

91%

1.535

31

14h 48.9m

-14° 42′

86° Mo

+0.8

6.8″

90%

1.382

1

11h 36.0m

+3° 57′ 107° Mo

-2.2

39.0″

99%

5.049

31

11h 33.5m

+4° 22′ 138° Mo

-2.4

42.4″

100%

4.648

1

16h 38.4m

-20° 28′

29° Mo

+0.5

15.3″

100%

10.860

31

16h 50.7m

-20° 49′

56° Mo

+0.5

15.8″

100%

10.525

16

1h 01.9m

+5° 55′

81° Ev

+5.8

3.5″

100%

20.096

Neptune

16

22h 38.8m

-9° 24′

43° Ev

+7.9

2.2″

100%

30.675

Pluto

16

19h 05.9m

-21° 00′

10° Mo

+14.3

0.1″

100%

33.992

Venus

31

Jupiter

Mars

Jupiter

Saturn
16
Uranus

Saturn

16

The table above gives each object's right ascension and declination (equinox 2000.0) at 0 h Universal Time on selected
dates, and its elongation from the Sun in the morning (Mo) or evening (Ev) sky. Next are the visual magnitude and
equatorial diameter. (Saturn's ring extent is 2.27 times its equatorial diameter.) Last are the percentage of a planet's disk
illuminated by the Sun and the distance from Earth in astronomical units. (Based on the mean Earth-Sun distance, 1 a.u.
is 149,597,871 kilometers, or 92,955,807 international miles.) For other dates, see SkyandTelescope.com/almanac.

Uranus
Neptune
Pluto

Vega

14 h
12h
RIGHT ASCENSION

16 h

18h

+40°

Planet disks at left have south up, to match the view in many telescopes. Blue ticks indicate the pole currently tilted
toward Earth.

10"

HERCULES

+30°

Regulus

+10°

Jupiter
Jan 2
LIBRA

-10°

Saturn
Mercury
Pluto Venus

-40°

SAGITTARIUS

CANCER

VIRGO

OPHIUCHUS
0°
AQUI LA

Mars

5
ECLI

Spica

P

8h
Castor
Pollux

GEMINI

6h

2h

4h
Pleiades

LEO

Arcturus

+20°

-30°

10 h

BOÖTES

PEGASUS

16

Betelgeuse

Rigel
Sirius

CORVUS

TIC

E R ID A N US

H Y D R A

8 am

CETUS

Fomalhaut

6 am

4 am

2 am

Midnight

10 pm

8 pm

-10°

LOCAL TIME OF TRANSIT
6 pm
4 pm

CAPRI C ORN US -30°

2 pm

The Sun and planets are positioned for mid-January; the colored arrows show the motion of each during the month. The Moon is plotted for evening dates in the Americas when it's waxing (right
side illuminated) or full, and for morning dates when it's waning (left side). "Local time of transit" tells when (in Local Mean Time) objects cross the meridian - that is, when they appear due
south and at their highest - at mid-month. Transits occur an hour later on the 1st, and an hour earlier at month's end.

44

Januar y 2016 sky & telescope

+10°

AQUARI US

Neptune

CANIS
MAJOR

Antares

+20°

0°

13

E Q U AT O R

ORION

29

+30°

Uranus

Procyon

SCORPIUS

10 am

PISCES

TA U R U S

20

CYGNUS

ARIES

19

Jan
23 -24

22h

0h

DECLINATION

16

Distance

-

Mars

1

Illumination

20h 51.0m

31

16

Diameter

-23° 05′

Mercury

1

Magnitude

18h 42.5m

31

21

11

Elongation

1

Sun
Jan 1

Right Ascension Declination

-40°
http://www.SkyandTelescope.com/almanac
Sky and Telescope - January 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky and Telescope - January 2016
