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General Category => Science, Technology and Knowledge => Space => Topic started by: mystery-ak on December 04, 2020, 06:53:44 pm

Title: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: mystery-ak on December 04, 2020, 06:53:44 pm
December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226

Penny Starr 4 Dec 2020

For this first time since the Middle Ages people on Earth can see what resembles the Christmas star seen by shepherds on the night of Christ’s birth. The “bright point of light” is actually the result of the close proximity between the planets Jupiter and Saturn that will take place on the week of December 20.

The planets aren’t really as close as they look, according to the Forbes magazine report on the phenomenon:

Quote
    In reality, of course, they won’t be close at all. Think about the distance from the Earth to the Sun. That’s what astronomers call an astronomical unit (au), and it’s how they measure distances in the vastness of the Solar System. Jupiter is 5 au from us. Saturn is 10 au.

    These two planets aligned in the Solar System a few weeks ago, but on December 21 they’ll appear aligned to us on Earth. Our line of sight is different because we’re orbiting quickly around the Sun.

    “Alignments between these two planets are rather rare, occurring once every 20 years or so, but this conjunction is exceptionally rare because of how close the planets will appear to be to one another,” said Patrick Hartigan, astronomer at Rice University. “You’d have to go all the way back to just before dawn on March 4, 1226, to see a closer alignment between these objects visible in the night sky.”

more
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/12/04/december-brings-rare-view-christmas-star-last-celestial-event-1226/ (https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/12/04/december-brings-rare-view-christmas-star-last-celestial-event-1226/)
Title: Re: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: roamer_1 on December 04, 2020, 06:59:42 pm
Well... Except the divine birth, and the shepherds and all happened in September, and not December... so..

 :whistle:
Title: Re: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: mystery-ak on December 04, 2020, 07:02:21 pm
Quote from: roamer_1 on December 04, 2020, 06:59:42 pm
Well... Except the divine birth, and the shepherds and all happened in September, and not December... so..

 :whistle:

picky, picky, picky....
Title: Re: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: roamer_1 on December 04, 2020, 07:04:10 pm
Quote from: mystery-ak on December 04, 2020, 07:02:21 pm
picky, picky, picky....

yeah... I'm funny that way...  :shrug:
Title: Re: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: catfish1957 on December 04, 2020, 07:06:39 pm
Quote from: mystery-ak on December 04, 2020, 07:02:21 pm
picky, picky, picky....

I am still pissed we haven't seen a spectacular comet in our lifetimes
Title: Re: December Brings Rare View of ‘Christmas Star’ — Last Celestial Event in 1226
Post by: kevindavis007 on December 05, 2020, 09:20:02 pm
I have been seeing those two planets getting closer and closer.