Idaho Skies Transcript for March 13th and 14th

RACHEL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for March 13th and 14th. We’re your hosts, Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
Jupiter is just five degrees away from the moon late on the evening of the 14th.

PAUL
What’s that other star to the right of the moon and below Jupiter?

RACHEL
Why it’s Spica. It’s just six degrees away from the moon.

PAUL
The moon, Jupiter, and Spica form a triangle in the low southeast at 10:00 PM.

RACHEL
And the triangle is just small enough to fit inside the view of your binoculars.

PAUL
Take a closer look at Jupiter and you’ll see at least two of its four major satellites.

RACHEL
The satellites will form a straight line with the planet, so you can’t confuse them for background stars.

PAUL
From the bottom of your binocular view and going up, the objects are Callisto, Ganymede, and Jupiter.

RACHEL
Sharp-eyed stargazers may detect Europa between Ganymede and Jupiter.

PAUL
...and Io on the other side of Jupiter.

RACHEL
Listeners with a telescope or spotting scope will find Europa and Io much easier to see.

PAUL
Jupiter is one very large planet.

RACHEL
It’s ten times wider than Earth and 318 times more massive.

PAUL
Astronomers believe Jupiter has a nickel-iron core some 30 times more massive than the entire Earth.

RACHEL
And that heavy metal core is surrounded in a thick blanket of metallic hydrogen.

PAUL
Hydrogen, which is a gas on Earth, turns into a liquid when squeezed by Jupiter’s immense gravity.

RACHEL
And that compressed hydrogen may even be metallic.

PAUL
In other words, it may conduct electricity.

RACHEL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 13th and 14th of March.

PAUL
Be sure to read our blog for additional information. It’s at idahoskies.blogspot.com

For Idaho Skies this is Paul...

RACHEL
...and Rachel.

PAUL
Dark skies and bright stars.