![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-1024x1024.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/0722f865-ee4e-46b7-aef6-bc6164afa24c.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nWhen to use this chart <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n1 Dec at 00:00 AEDT (13:00 UT) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n15 Dec at 23:00 AEDT (12:00 UT) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n31 Dec at 22:00 AEDT (11:00 UT) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nThe chart accurately matches the sky on the dates and times shown for Sydney, Australia. The sky is different at other times as the stars crossing it set four minutes earlier each night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nDecember highlights<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nRecommended equipment: Small\/medium telescope<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nMars is fascinating, being the only planet we can see surface features on. Dark and light regions betray the presence of mountains, valleys and plains. The best time to see it is at opposition. This happens on 8 December, when the planet reaches 17.1 arcseconds in diameter. Because Mars\u2019s day is 40 minutes longer than Earth\u2019s, if you observe at the same time each night, in five weeks you\u2019ll have seen the whole globe, although occasional dust storms may make it challenging! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stars and constellations<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nRecommended equipment: Naked eye<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nThis time of year may lack majestic winter Milky Way views, but there\u2019s no shortage of brilliant luminaries. High in the south are the somewhat isolated stars Achernar (in Eridanus) and Canopus (in Carina). Heading northward there is Sirius (in Canis Major) and Procyon (in Canis Minor), the alpha stars to Orion\u2019s hunting dogs. Orion himself contributes Betelgeuse and Rigel. Below the Hunter is Capella. That\u2019s seven of the top 10 brightest stars, all well-placed to see by late evening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The planets<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nRecommended equipment: Naked eye<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nA banquet of planets this month! Twilight sees the return of Mercury and Venus, although Mercury\u2019s visit is short-lived. They are only 1.4\u00b0 apart on 29 December, with Saturn higher up in the west, setting around 22:30 mid-month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saturn is followed by Jupiter and Neptune, both retiring around midnight. Departing Uranus can be found due north around the end of twilight mid-month. With Mars at opposition you have all night to see it, with the planet transiting around midnight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deep-sky objects<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\nRecommended equipment: Large telescope<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nThis month, a trip to the Triangulum constellation. Starting at the triangle\u2019s \u2018point\u2019, 2nd-magnitude Alpha Trianguli, move 2.5\u00b0 south-southwest to discover the galaxy NGC 672 (RA 01h 47.9m, dec. +27\u00b0 26\u2019). This mag. +10.8 spiral stands out, with its bright halo (3.5\u2019x1\u2019), uniform brightness and small oval-shaped core orientated roughly east\u2013west. Only 8 arcminutes southwest lies IC 1727. This spiral, at mag. +11.5, has a much fainter surface brightness, a smaller oval halo (1\u2019x2.5\u2019) and tiny core, compared to NGC 672. The galaxies are orientated at a right angle. Only 0.6\u00b0 southeast is the open cluster Collinder 21 (RA 01h 50.2m, dec. +27\u00b0 04\u2019). This compact cluster (6 arcminutes across) is best observed at low power, with stars ranging from 8th to 12th magnitude, with the brightest dozen arranged in a \u2018C\u2019 shape. Can you get all three objects in the same field of view? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This month, Mars is at its best and we seek out galaxies and a cluster off the tip of the Triangulum <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":38382,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"100","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"100","purple_seq_number":"1","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"1","purple_source_article":"article_100-1.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_100-1.xml","purple_source_issue":"December-2022","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"December-2022","purple_external_id":"December-2022-100-1","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"December-2022-100-1","purple_issue_code":"|0000086559||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000086559||","purple_android_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_ios_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"075fab74-0a21-4201-866a-899d6c41c40c","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[14],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1.png","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1.png",3317,3317,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-300x300.png",300,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-768x768.png",768,768,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-1024x1024.png",800,800,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-1536x1536.png",1536,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-2048x2048.png",2048,2048,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"This month, Mars is at its best and we seek out galaxies and a cluster off the tip of the Triangulum","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38371"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38862,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371\/revisions\/38862"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
15 Dec at 23:00 AEDT (12:00 UT) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 31 Dec at 22:00 AEDT (11:00 UT) <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The chart accurately matches the sky on the dates and times shown for Sydney, Australia. The sky is different at other times as the stars crossing it set four minutes earlier each night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Recommended equipment: Small\/medium telescope<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mars is fascinating, being the only planet we can see surface features on. Dark and light regions betray the presence of mountains, valleys and plains. The best time to see it is at opposition. This happens on 8 December, when the planet reaches 17.1 arcseconds in diameter. Because Mars\u2019s day is 40 minutes longer than Earth\u2019s, if you observe at the same time each night, in five weeks you\u2019ll have seen the whole globe, although occasional dust storms may make it challenging! <\/p>\n\n\n\n Recommended equipment: Naked eye<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This time of year may lack majestic winter Milky Way views, but there\u2019s no shortage of brilliant luminaries. High in the south are the somewhat isolated stars Achernar (in Eridanus) and Canopus (in Carina). Heading northward there is Sirius (in Canis Major) and Procyon (in Canis Minor), the alpha stars to Orion\u2019s hunting dogs. Orion himself contributes Betelgeuse and Rigel. Below the Hunter is Capella. That\u2019s seven of the top 10 brightest stars, all well-placed to see by late evening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Recommended equipment: Naked eye<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A banquet of planets this month! Twilight sees the return of Mercury and Venus, although Mercury\u2019s visit is short-lived. They are only 1.4\u00b0 apart on 29 December, with Saturn higher up in the west, setting around 22:30 mid-month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Saturn is followed by Jupiter and Neptune, both retiring around midnight. Departing Uranus can be found due north around the end of twilight mid-month. With Mars at opposition you have all night to see it, with the planet transiting around midnight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Recommended equipment: Large telescope<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This month, a trip to the Triangulum constellation. Starting at the triangle\u2019s \u2018point\u2019, 2nd-magnitude Alpha Trianguli, move 2.5\u00b0 south-southwest to discover the galaxy NGC 672 (RA 01h 47.9m, dec. +27\u00b0 26\u2019). This mag. +10.8 spiral stands out, with its bright halo (3.5\u2019x1\u2019), uniform brightness and small oval-shaped core orientated roughly east\u2013west. Only 8 arcminutes southwest lies IC 1727. This spiral, at mag. +11.5, has a much fainter surface brightness, a smaller oval halo (1\u2019x2.5\u2019) and tiny core, compared to NGC 672. The galaxies are orientated at a right angle. Only 0.6\u00b0 southeast is the open cluster Collinder 21 (RA 01h 50.2m, dec. +27\u00b0 04\u2019). This compact cluster (6 arcminutes across) is best observed at low power, with stars ranging from 8th to 12th magnitude, with the brightest dozen arranged in a \u2018C\u2019 shape. Can you get all three objects in the same field of view? <\/p>\n\n\n\n This month, Mars is at its best and we seek out galaxies and a cluster off the tip of the Triangulum <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":38382,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"100","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"100","purple_seq_number":"1","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"1","purple_source_article":"article_100-1.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_100-1.xml","purple_source_issue":"December-2022","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"December-2022","purple_external_id":"December-2022-100-1","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"December-2022-100-1","purple_issue_code":"|0000086559||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000086559||","purple_android_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_ios_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.im.skyatnight.211","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"075fab74-0a21-4201-866a-899d6c41c40c","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[14],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1.png","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1.png",3317,3317,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-300x300.png",300,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-768x768.png",768,768,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-1024x1024.png",800,800,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-1536x1536.png",1536,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2022\/11\/Layer-1-2048x2048.png",2048,2048,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"This month, Mars is at its best and we seek out galaxies and a cluster off the tip of the Triangulum","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38371"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38862,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38371\/revisions\/38862"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38371"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38371"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38371"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\n\n\nDecember highlights<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Stars and constellations<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The planets<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Deep-sky objects<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n