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| Jupiter (NASA - public domain) |
by Peggy Robin
Jupiter will be super bright tonight. On Friday and Saturday
nights, Jupiter is “in opposition,” meaning that the sun, the earth and Jupiter
are all neatly lined up, with the earth in the middle, resulting in Jupiter at
its maximum brightness. There’s a wonderful explanation from the Capital Weather
Gang below, and I recommend watching the two-minute video as well:
[Try this shortened link if the long link is broken: http://wapo.st/2oSnKYv]
One of the nice bits of Jupiter trivia I’ve learned is that
the “great red spot” of Jupiter is shrinking; it used to be larger than the
diameter of the earth but not anymore. And it’s become rounder, too. It’s
really amazing to see that spot through a telescope, and Saturday night should
be a fine time to have a look. Even without a telescope, Jupiter is so bright
that you can find it on a clear night sky. But there are lots of places around the region
that you can go and look through a telescope, including observatories and astronomy
clubs. Here’s a list:
Of course, we have a very famous telescope quite close to
Cleveland Park – at the Naval Observatory on Massachusetts Avenue – but you can’t
get in unless you booked your tour weeks in advance. They’re booking tours right
now for May and June. Visitor information is here:
If you do manage to see the giant planet, see if you can do
it without replaying the ubiquitous pop hit of 2009 in your head:
(“Drops of Jupiter”)
Final factoid: There’s nothing that rhymes with Jupiter...unless you accept “stupider” as the proper comparative form of “stupid.” (But we’re actually supposed to say “more
stupid.”)
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Still Life with Robin is published on the Cleveland ParkListserv and on All Life Is Local on Saturdays.
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