Space
Aldebaran Occultation: A Pre-Halloween Treat For Astronomy Lovers
Rochell
First Posted: Oct 21, 2016 05:15 AM EDT
Last Tuesday night, major sections of the United States, Mexico, parts of Canada and the Caribbean witnessed the occultation of Aldebaran. For a little over an hour, Aldebaran -- one of the brightest stars in the sky and is referred to as the fiery eye of Taurus (the Bull) -- disappeared behind the lighted area of the moon, and reappeared later on the moon's dark side.
The first Aldebaran occultation occurred in January 2015, reports USA Today. Since then, it's been happening once every lunar month, the last of which will be in September 2018. After the series is completed, the world will have to wait for another 15 years for the next Aldebaran occultation.
Occultation is what happens when one celestial body temporarily hides another celestial body as it passes in front of it. Unlike more well-known cosmic spectacles like an eclipse, you will need a telescope or a pair of binoculars to fully enjoy an occultation event.
There are planetary occultations (which do not happen as often) and lunar occultations. The Aldebaran occultation is classified as a lunar occultation because it is the moon that caused the event.
There are 2 types of lunar occultations: total and grazing. When a star completely vanishes and reappears about an hour later after the moon passes in front of it, it's called a total occultation. When a star just seems to "graze" or slide along the edge of the moon, it's called a grazing occultation.
In the case of Aldebaran, both types of lunar occultation transpired. In most areas where the spectacle was visible, Aldebaran was completely hidden from view for more than an hour. But from a narrow strip of land running from Los Angeles to Minneapolis, there was a more fascinating view along the "graze" line where the star disappeared and reappeared several times, as reported by Time.
Aldebaran is not the only star that has experienced being occulted. Aside from this bright orange giant, other stars like Antares, Regulus and Spica also have their own occultation series.
See Now:
NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone
©2024 ScienceWorldReport.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The window to the world of science news.
More on SCIENCEwr
First Posted: Oct 21, 2016 05:15 AM EDT
Last Tuesday night, major sections of the United States, Mexico, parts of Canada and the Caribbean witnessed the occultation of Aldebaran. For a little over an hour, Aldebaran -- one of the brightest stars in the sky and is referred to as the fiery eye of Taurus (the Bull) -- disappeared behind the lighted area of the moon, and reappeared later on the moon's dark side.
The first Aldebaran occultation occurred in January 2015, reports USA Today. Since then, it's been happening once every lunar month, the last of which will be in September 2018. After the series is completed, the world will have to wait for another 15 years for the next Aldebaran occultation.
Occultation is what happens when one celestial body temporarily hides another celestial body as it passes in front of it. Unlike more well-known cosmic spectacles like an eclipse, you will need a telescope or a pair of binoculars to fully enjoy an occultation event.
There are planetary occultations (which do not happen as often) and lunar occultations. The Aldebaran occultation is classified as a lunar occultation because it is the moon that caused the event.
There are 2 types of lunar occultations: total and grazing. When a star completely vanishes and reappears about an hour later after the moon passes in front of it, it's called a total occultation. When a star just seems to "graze" or slide along the edge of the moon, it's called a grazing occultation.
In the case of Aldebaran, both types of lunar occultation transpired. In most areas where the spectacle was visible, Aldebaran was completely hidden from view for more than an hour. But from a narrow strip of land running from Los Angeles to Minneapolis, there was a more fascinating view along the "graze" line where the star disappeared and reappeared several times, as reported by Time.
Aldebaran is not the only star that has experienced being occulted. Aside from this bright orange giant, other stars like Antares, Regulus and Spica also have their own occultation series.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone