Oct

2

Get Sirius.

Posted by Christopher Waldrop

October 2, 2008 |

Around this time of year there are a few things I notice. The mornings are cool. There are a lot more spider webs around—or maybe they’re just more visible because they’re bigger, and the dew hangs so heavily on them. Big green walnuts start rolling around the sidewalks. And then, one morning, I look to the South and see Orion. It’s probably been there for weeks, maybe a month or more and I’ve just been oblivious to it. Well, as Thoreau said,

The light which puts out our eyes is darkness to us. Only that day dawns to which we are awake. There is more day to dawn. The sun is but a morning star.

It’s not really Fall until I see Orion in the mornings and, just to the left of it, Sirius. Or, as the Egyptians called it, Sothis, the star that signaled the beginning of the annual Nile floods they depended on. While I know all five planets that can be seen without a telescope (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) and a few constellations, Sirius, Sothis, or just a massive blue white star twenty times bigger than the Sun less than nine light years away that forms a binary system with a white dwarf the size of the Sun—whatever you call it—is the only star I can identify with any regularity. And as Winter comes on they’ll rise later at night until I’ll be able to see them again in almost the exact same place, but at night instead of in the morning.


Comments

4 Comments so far

  1. Baino on October 2, 2008 1:28 am

    One of the few constellations that the Southern Hemisphere shares with the north Chris. We can see Orion as well . . .of course the most obvious feature is his belt!

  2. Christopher Waldrop on October 3, 2008 7:05 am

    His belt? I always thought it was his shoulders…or have you been watching Men In Black? Anyway I’ve wondered what constellations are visible in the Southern Hemisphere. One of these days I’m going to go down there and see for myself.

  3. Morgan on October 3, 2008 9:38 am

    I have an embarrassing admission to make. I suck as an amateur astronomer. My humiliation is only deepened because my dingbat of a mother can go out and tell you where to find everything in the sky. But all I can find is the big dipper. Maybe I lack some kind of inner compass. Or the ability to orient myself properly. I’ve got books on astronomy but they aren’t simple enough. I don’t need Astronomy for Dummies, but Astronomy for Drooling Retards.

  4. Christopher Waldrop on October 3, 2008 11:05 am

    I do have the advantage of living in an area where there’s enough light pollution that only the really bright stars are visible. I’m not saying light pollution is a good thing (among other things it screws up the migratory patterns of birds), just that it makes it easier.
    I also cheat with this: http://www.wunderground.com/sky/index.asp
    It defaults to “Up” but if you choose one of the cardinal directions that makes it a lot easier.
    And you reminded me of the first time my mother tried to point out the Big Dipper to me. She kept going on about the spoon and handle, and I just sat there thinking, “What the hell is she talking about? All I see are STARS.”

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