Idaho Skies Transcript for October 19th, 20th, and 21st

RACHEL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for October 19th, 20th, and 21st. We’re your hosts, Rachel…

PAUL
…and Paul.

RACHEL
The moon leaves the company of Mars and spends this week swimming through a rather dim part of the night sky.

PAUL
In fact, stargazers will notice that the only bright star in this part of the sky is below the moon on the 19th. The star’s name is Fomalhaut. And it’s close to our solar system, at only 25 light years away. Which is close enough for the Hubble Space Telescope to see a planet orbiting it.

RACHEL
Now let’s give a little context to this observation. Fomalhaut is very young and still surrounded in the gas cloud it condensed from. The planet is a giant planet and still very bright from its formation. And it’s very distant from Fomalhaut. So it’s not very surprising that this planet can be seen with a telescope.

PAUL
Fomalhaut is the brightest star of the Piscis Austrinis. Which is the constellation of the Southern Fish. Piscis Austrinis is below the more familiar constellation of Pisces. And Pisces is faint like the Southern Fish, but has no bright stars at all. So even though Pisces is big and overhead, it’s almost never seen by the causal stargazer.

RACHEL
Fittingly, Piscis Austrinis is considered the parent of the two fish in Pisces. In constellation maps, Fomalhaut is located at the mouth of the fish. And the fish’s mouth is turned upward so it can swallow the water pouring from the jar of Aquarius.

PAUL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 19th, 20th, and 21st of October.

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

For Idaho Skies this is Rachel…

PAUL
…and Paul.

RACHEL
Dark skies and bright stars.