Transcript for March 31 - April 5

PAUL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for the first week of April. We’re your hosts, Paul...

RACHEL
...and Rachel.

PAUL
The moon is one of the most recognizable astronomical objects.

RACHEL
It’s attracted the attention of humans because of its brightness and ever changing shape.

PAUL
The moon again attracts our attention on the first of the month.

RACHEL
That’s when you’ll find its very thin crescent in the low west shortly after sunset.

PAUL
The moon will only be two and a half days old.

RACHEL
That’s a younger moon than most people have seen.

PAUL
To observe the young crescent moon, you’ll need to begin searching shortly after sunset and as the sky is beginning to darken.

RACHEL
That’s because by the time the sky gets completely dark, the moon will have already set.

PAUL
Your binoculars will make it much easier to find this astronomical treat.

RACHEL
However, please do not begin searching with binoculars until after the sun has set.

PAUL
The moon passes through the edge of the Hyades star cluster on the night of the 3rd.

RACHEL
The stars in the Hyades star cluster represent the five daughters of Atlas, the Titan of Greek mythology.

PAUL
The cluster is only 152 light years away.

RACHEL
That puts it closer to Earth than any other star cluster.

PAUL
This is the major reason why the cluster appears so large in our sky.

RACHEL
Telescopes detect hundreds of stars in this cluster.

PAUL
However, we can only see about two dozen through binoculars.

RACHEL
Take a peek with your binoculars and you’ll discover that the Hyades star cluster appears much larger than the moon.

PAUL
The moon and Hyades make a nice photographic target for your digital camera.

RACHEL
You’ll need an exposure several seconds long in order to record images of the stars in your picture.

PAUL
To record an image several seconds long means you’ll need to attach your camera to a camera tripod.

RACHEL
Unfortunately, the exposure will over-expose the moon.

PAUL
However, since the moon is crescent shaped, the picture may show signs of Earthshine on the moon.

RACHEL
Earthshine is the faint illumination of the dark portion of the moon.

PAUL
This faint light comes from sunlight reflecting off Earth.

RACHEL
It’s bright enough however to show markings on the moon.

PAUL
That’s Idaho Skies for the first week of April. Next week the moon points us at two very nice star clusters.

RACHEL
Be sure to follow us on Twitter at Idaho Skies for this week’s event reminders and sky maps.
For Idaho Skies this is Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
Dark skies and bright stars.