Night Sky

The Hyades + The Moon, Mercury, and Earthshine

Source: SkySafariProThe Hyades, a cluster of 300 to 400 stars making up the head of Taurus, the Bull, form a distinctive “V” shaped group, including the bright red Aldebaran, the glaring “eye” of the angry Bull. Placed in the heavens northeast of Orion’s Belt and southwest of the Pleiades, the Hyades are best seen in the evenings of November — January.

The Hyades were mentioned by a number of classical authors, including both Homer and Ovid, and in Greek mythology, the Hyades were the five daughters of Atlas and half-sisters to the Pleiades. Their name, “the rainy ones” in Greek, is said to be derived from their helical (near dawn) rising during the season of spring rains.

Meanwhile, shortly after sunset tonight and tomorrow night, a thin waxing crescent moon will (if you’re not located in a river canyon) be seen floating low above the western horizon, and the planet Mercury will appear to be close to our moon during these evenings, but binoculars might help you to spot the tiny planet. However, seeing earthshine, a glow on the unlit side of the moon caused by light reflected from the Earth, will be easy to find with your naked eye.