Idaho Skies Transcript for February 5th and 6th

RACHEL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for February 5th and 6th. We’re your hosts, Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
After midnight on the 5th, stargazers will see a bright white star below and right of the moon.

PAUL
This star is Spica and it’s the brightest star in Virgo the Maiden.

RACHEL
Spica, by the way is the 16th brightest star in the sky.

PAUL
But you’ll find an even brighter star nearby.

RACHEL
Yep, it’s Arcturus and it’s farther away from the moon than Spica.

PAUL
You’ll find Arcturus to the upper right of the moon rather than the lower right like Spica.

RACHEL
Orange Arcturus is the brightest star of Bootes the Herdsman.

PAUL
And it’s the 4th brightest star in the sky.

RACHEL
One reason why it appears so bright is that it’s only 37 light years away.

PAUL
The other reason Arcturus is so bright is because it’s 10% heavier than the sun.

RACHEL
That extra heft means its fusing hydrogen into helium faster than the sun.

PAUL
Which also means it’s also living its life more quickly than the sun.

RACHEL
So even though Arcturus is only seven billion years old, it’s already used most of its allotted hydrogen fuel.

PAUL
For comparison, it will take the sun about ten billion years to do the same.

RACHEL
Astronomers aren’t sure, but Arcturus actually might be fusing the helium in its core.

PAUL
If so, then its core is surrounded by a shell of fusing hydrogen, which is adding even more helium to its core.

RACHEL
And that’s increasing the star’s diameter and brightness even more.

PAUL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 5th and 6th of February.

RACHEL
Be sure to read our blog at idahoskies.blogspot.com for additional information.

For Idaho Skies this is Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
Dark skies and bright stars.