Observers in the UK with a clear sky high to the south-southeast shortly after midnight on Sunday, 12 January 2020 can see the 16-day-old waning gibbous Moon just three-quarters of a degree north of the beautiful open star cluster Messier 44, otherwise known as Praesepe, or the Beehive Cluster. AN graphic by Ade Ashford.If you own a pair of binoculars or a small telescope, you may wish to take a look at the Moon on the night of 11–12 January 2020 since it lies in the constellation of Cancer, the Crab. If you look a little more closely, you’ll see that the Moon lies in the same field of view as the glorious open star cluster known as Praesepe, the Beehive Cluster, or more prosaically as Messier 44.
For observers in the British Isles, the Moon’s orbital motion doesn’t bring it closest to the Beehive Cluster until the calendar clicks onto 12 January, by which time the pair are high in the south-southeast. At their closest – 12:30am GMT (00:30 UT) – the 16-day-old waning gibbous Moon lies just three-quarters of a degree north of the heart of Praesepe. In a telescope, use your lowest magnification eyepiece and watch as the Moon glides over the northern edge of M44, occulting (passing in front of) a number of its fainter stars.
If clear skies persist, observers in the UK can view four naked-eye planets between now and the end of the month. Brightest planet Venus is visible low in the west some 45 minutes after sunset, while the waxing Moon is your celestial pointer to Jupiter, Saturn and Mars between 21 and 28 July at midnight.
On 18 June at the end of civil twilight in the UK, planets Mars and Mercury lie slightly less than one-quarter of a degree apart in the constellation of Gemini. Observing this conjunction will be a challenge from the UK as the pair will be just 5 degrees high in the west-northwest at civil dusk in bright twilight, which is about 50 minutes after sunset for London.
A rover and landing platform developed as a backup for China’s Chang’e 3 Moon mission will be repurposed to attempt the first touchdown on the lunar far side by the end of the decade, Chinese officials said.
