Dance of the moon and planets .. A wonderful celestial scene you see with your eyes in February

Shadi Abdel-Hafiz

February witnesses a special astronomical event that you can see with your eyes, as the moon moves between a group of the brightest stars and planets in the night sky through several consecutive nights, to follow the scene that does not need any complicated astronomical instruments, just go out to the balcony or the roof of the house.

Moon dances
The scene begins at the dawn of February 17, when you can see the moon standing next to a bright red object in the sky next to dawn, this is the Antares, the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpio, a super red giant with a diameter of up to 800 Times the diameter of the sun.

Then one night, at the same time, the moon will stand in a declining crescent phase next to another red object, too, but this time it is Mars, the red planet, and you can follow the scene until the morning.

If you decide to compare Mars with a scorpion's heart, you will notice a clear similarity in color, so the scorpion's heart was called the ancient myth (Antares), that is, "against Ares," and ancient people had given Mars the title of Ares, the god of war in the old myth.

By February 19 - about an hour before sunrise - you can see the crescent standing next to Jupiter, which appears in a clear glossy white color that you can easily notice.

Jupiter appears shiny in the sky because it is the largest of the planets, but rather it is so large that you can put 1,000 small balls the size of the Earth inside it.

And before the sunrise of February 20, you can see the crescent moon being weak in its illumination, only about 11% of its surface, and you see it standing next to Saturn, which appears in a yellowish color on the eastern horizon, and in general, the planets appear in the sky as stars because they - like the moon - Reflect sunlight.

Sky lights
In this context, let us also point out that February and March are best for observing Venus, which shines as a bright lamp above the western horizon after sunset, and the scene will be clear and simple.

As for the planet Mercury, the best time to observe it will be around February 10 because it is gaining the highest height in the sky in that period, and you can see it with your eyes just above the eastern horizon just after sunset, and it appears as a bright orange object.

In all cases, following up the night sky and the movements of the moon between them is an enjoyable hobby, as it is useful in attracting children to the fields of astronomy, and this may develop them a future love for science.