A Closer Look at M87 M87 was discovered by Charles Messier in 1781. He classified it and eight other similar deep space objects as “Nebulous.” Through a small telescope, M87 […] The post Night Sky: The Eta Aquarids meteor shower and more highlights for May appeared first on Island Free Press.
A Closer Look at M87
M87 was discovered by Charles Messier in 1781. He classified it and eight other similar deep space objects as “Nebulous.”
Through a small telescope, M87 looks like this:
M87 was made famous among astronomers in 1918, when Heber D. Curtis discovered that in short term photographs you could see a “straight ray” extending from the center of the nebulae. It looks like this.
The Jet (protruding to the upper left) is a stream of plasma originating from the black hole in the center of the galaxy. This Jet is about 18 thousand light years long, and the particles in it move at close to the speed of light!
Of course, this Jet obliterates anything that gets in its way, but it also seems to be adversely affecting the surrounding stars. Recent research suggests that this Plasma Jet might be causing nearby stars to explode as nova!
M87 was not classified as a galaxy until 1926 when Edwin Hubble classified it as an extragalactic nebula. He did not use the term “galaxy” because at the time it was synonymous with the Milky Way.
It’s interesting to note that in 1925, Hubble’s research into Cepheid variable stars helped him prove that M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, was located outside of the Milky Way. The Milky Way is 53 thousand light years in diameter, and M31 is 2.5 million light years from us. So, in a year, the known universe expanded from 50,000 light years to over 55 million light years.
What you can look for in April’s Night Skies
If you get up before sunrise (6:09 a.m.) on May 1 and it’s clear, you’ll be able to see Venus, Saturn, and Neptune bunched together about 5 degrees above the eastern horizon.
In the evening, the Summer Triangle slowly rises above the Eastern horizon. It starts with Vega rising at 8:34 p.m. Next comes Deneb at 9:51. The last star of the triangle, Altair rises at 11:44 p.m.
The Eta Aquarids meteor shower peaks on the night of May 5. The best viewing will occur between 3:00 and 5:00 a.m. The shooting star will appear to originate about 15 to 30 degrees above the eastern horizon.
Moon Phases:
1st Quarter is May 4
Full Moon is May 12
Last Quarter is May 20
New Moon is May 26
The post Night Sky: The Eta Aquarids meteor shower and more highlights for May appeared first on Island Free Press.
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