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Name That Star


Maine farmer

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Now that the sun has set well before I can finish my evening chores, one star in particular keeps catching my eye.  If you were to face Venus shortly before it sets, then turn 180 degrees, this star will be the brightest in your field of view, somewhere 20 to 30 degrees above the northeastern horizon.  It seems to twinkle more than the other stars, and it has me wondering.

 

I wish I had picked up a few Astronomy courses back in school.

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Now that the sun has set well before I can finish my evening chores, one star in particular keeps catching my eye.  If you were to face Venus shortly before it sets, then turn 180 degrees, this star will be the brightest in your field of view, somewhere 20 to 30 degrees above the northeastern horizon.  It seems to twinkle more than the other stars, and it has me wondering.

 

I wish I had picked up a few Astronomy courses back in school.

I'd guess it's Capella in the constellation Auriga.

 

How to See Capella: A Star to Get Your Goat, By Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist

... But I have also been getting inquiries of late about another unusually bright, starlike object, this one low in the north-northeast sky soon after it gets fully dark. It isn't so much that it is bright — it's just that it looks out of place since usually you don’t see such a bright star located so far to the north.

 

The object also sometimes seems to twinkle with a yellowish-orange when it stands just above the horizon. ...

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Yes, that is my guess too. Capella is nearly 180 degrees separation from Venus in Az, and when Venus is about 20 deg El , Capella is about the same. Capella will twinkle because of the low elevation and atmospheric effects.

If you want to be sure of what star you are seeing, just use this nice Online Planetarium and it is free.

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