The starry sky in December 2023
On December 22 at 4:27 a.m., the sun is at the lowest point in its apparent orbit around our home planet for the northern hemisphere. This is also known as the winter solstice. At noon, it reaches its highest altitude above the horizon in Zweibrücken at just under 18 degrees.
SUN AND MOON
On the day of the winter solstice, our central star rises above the horizon in Zweibrücken at 8:20 am and sets again at 4:28 pm. The length of the day is therefore 8 hours and 8 minutes. The so-called civil twilight begins at 7:46 am and ends at 5:12 pm. From now on, things slowly start to look up again. On the 31st, the length of the day is again 8 hours and 23 minutes.
On 24.12., the almost full moon moves through the Golden Gate of the ecliptic during the day. Around 7 p.m., however, there is still a nice view when the Earth's satellite is still close to the Pleiades and the Hyades.
At the beginning and end of the month, the moon clouds the view of fainter objects.
PLANETS
The planet closest to the sun Mercury is not observed in December.
Venus moves to more southerly climes in the zodiac and therefore delays its risings. However, it continues to greet us as the "morning star". On New Year's Eve, it crosses the horizon at 5:17 am. There is a nice view of the sky on December 9 at around 6:30 a.m. when the waning moon joins Venus in the sky.
Mars was in conjunction with the sun on November 18. Although its angular distance to our parent star increases to 13 degrees over the course of the month, this is nowhere near enough for morning visibility.
The largest planet in the solar system with a diameter of 140,000 km, Jupiter, was in opposition to the sun at the beginning of the previous month. It is still easy to observe and brings the year to a close as a radiant celestial object. In the middle of the month at around 9 pm, it can be found exactly to the south.
Saturn shifts its setting to before midnight and is low in the night sky in the southwest. The best time for observing the ringed planet has passed. Unfortunately, the closest approach of the moon and Saturn at midnight on the third Advent remains unobservable for us. The planet has already set by this time. Nevertheless, it is worth taking a look at the western horizon at around 8 pm. The angular distance at this time is just under 5 degrees.
The greenish planet Uranus, which was also in opposition to the Sun in the middle of the previous month, can already be found in the evening sky with binoculars or a small telescope.
STARRY SKY
The autumn constellations move to the western night sky. They are followed in the east by the magnificent winter constellations.
On eastern horizon the sky chaser Orion can already be seen. Also the constellation Gemini.
About us is Taurus with the V-shaped horns, the Hyades, which are located south of the Pleiades (see November overview). The main star of the Hyades is the striking red giant star Aldebaran.
The irregular pentagon of the carter can be found looking high towards the south, to the left above Taurus. The striking main star Capella (Latin for little goat) is the sixth brightest star in the night sky. Despite its Latin name, the name Capella has its origins in Greek mythology. It describes how the Greek god Zeus, who grew up on Crete, was once fed by the goat Amalthea, who was moved to the heavens by Zeus in gratitude. Amalthea is also the name of a small moon of Jupiter, which has also been called the "celestial potato" due to its irregular shape. Here is an image taken from a distance of 706,000 km by the Voyager 1 space probe in 1979. The dimensions of the elongated moon are approx. 260 km x 150 km x 135 km.
The southern starry sky is rather sparsely populated with stars. One of the most extensive but inconspicuous constellation Eridanus is located there.
In the West you can still see the striking autumnal quadrilateral, Pegasus and Andromeda. Below it is the constellation of Pisces.
On northern sky the Great Bear gradually rises above the eastern areas.
The following graphic shows the view of the sky on December 15 at 10 pm.
