Welcome to the 189th edition of 6 Storm Team Starwatch. This is a blog that will be updated every Friday and will list events happening in the sky.

Friday, November 17th 2023

The Leonids meteor shower peaks tonight (NASA)! The most meteors will be visible between midnight Friday night and dawn Saturday morning (NASA). This meteor shower originates from the comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle (NASA). Its radiant is in the constellation Leo (NASA). During peak activity you can see about 15 meteors per hour (NASA). The Leonids are a great meteor shower to watch because it tends to produce bright meteors with long trains that can last for a few seconds after the initial flash of light (NASA). Sometimes these meteors are colorful (NASA). The Leonids are also considered to be some of the fastest meteors and this shower can sometimes produce fireballs (NASA).

Remember, meteors can be viewed from any direction (NASA). The best way to spot meteors will be to go somewhere away from artificial light and lie down while looking straight up in all directions (NASA).

The Moon will be near its First Quarter phase Friday night, but because it sets just a few hours after nightfall, moonlight won’t impact your ability to see this meteor shower (NASA).

Additionally, tonight the waxing crescent Moon can be seen near Saturn and the bright star Altair forming a triangle (Sky & Telescope). You will want to look South-Southwest to see this (Sky & Telescope).

Saturday, November 18th 2023

Tonight around 8 P.M. the constellation Orion will be visible near the bright star Aldebaran if you look East (Sky & Telescope). Above Aldebaran will be the star cluster the Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters (Sky & Telescope).

Sunday, November 19th – Monday, November 20th 2023

The next two nights the Moon will be visible near Saturn (Sky & Telescope). You will want to look South about halfway up to see this (Sky & Telescope).

https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/observing-news/this-weeks-sky-at-a-glance-november-10-19/
Image Courtesy of Sky & Telescope

The First Quarter Moon will also officially take place on Monday (NASA).

This Month

For the month of November, Saturn will be visible in the sky (NASA). You will want to look South about halfway up in the sky a few hours after dark to spot this planet (NASA). This part of the sky is filled with constellations that are related to water and as a result it is sometimes called “the Sea” or “the Water” (NASA).

The following sites were used in the creation of this blog: