May Sky Notes
Written by John StapletonImage Credit: Big Think
The Stuff of Science Fiction
May is upon us and by mid-month the sky never gets truly dark. In spite of this the Spring constellations are at their best and it is a good time to observe them. However observing these patterns is best done after 10pm.
Because of the way that the planets orbit the Sun, all at different speeds and at varying distances, it is possible for all of the planets to be on the opposite side of the sun from the Earth or in the same part of the sky as the Sun and therefore not visible to us, as is pretty much the case this month.
Many recent developments in technology have come about after scientists and engineers were inspired to research ideas first proposed as science-fiction. The very idea of space travel was conceived in the science fiction of the late 19th and early 20th centuries by writer such as Jules Verne and HG Wells. Both cloning and bionic (man-made) organ and limb replacements were originally concepts explored by science fiction authors in the 1940’s and 50’s as were L.A.S.E.R. weapons and jet packs on space suits. Robots and desktop computers also became mainstays of science fiction from this time and were exploited extensively in early Dr Who stories. Today’s mobile phone is the direct descendant of a Star Trek communicator and there have been serious feasibility studies into warp travel and matter transfer.
A recently published science book by a noted theoretical physicist has engaged with the possibility of the existence of white holes. These objects are the exact opposite of a black hole and are predicted by the same equations used in Albert Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity to predict black holes. Einstein himself was unhappy about these predictions and came up with a universal constant in order to avoid having to deal with them but later theoretical physicists began to unpick the problems inherent in Einstein’s equations. One argument against the existence of white holes is that no-one has ever seen one or seen any effect that might be caused by such an object. The author explains his theory that white holes exist within the quantum sized singularity at the heart of a black hole and only after the mass sucked in by the black hole extends to its event horizon. Furthermore, because of quantum nature the white hole particles and patches of space become clouds of probability so that anything might happen. The author suggests that a potential white hole is allowed to “bounce” back through time and spew its contents out there. So a little different to the idea of a “Stargate”. The book has been criticised by other physicists because it has been written for the layman and not as a scientific treatise packed with mathematical explanations and formulae. What the book has done is open up yet another conversation aiming to turn science fiction into science fact.
Sky Notes
Please note all times given in this article are in GMT so remember to add an hour to get the time in BST which started on Sunday 31st March.
See May Sky Schedule
Mercury and Venus: Both of these inner planets are closer to the Sun than the Earth so are never very far from the Sun (especially Mercury). Neither of the inner planets (inside the orbit of the Earth) are visible this month.
Mars: The red planet is still very distant and consequently very small. It can be seen against the background stars of Pisces after it rises at 3am.
Jupiter: Jupiter is also not visible this month as it lies in Taurus, below our horizons.
Saturn: Saturn is seen low in the early morning sky against the background constellation of Aquarius.
Uranus and Neptune: These planets are also not visible this month.
Meteor Shower: The Eta Aquarid meteor shower (so called because the point they appear to radiate from lies near the star Eta Aquarii) peaks on May 6. The radiant (point the meteors radiate from) lies below our horizon until, about 2am so we only have a limited view. Meteors from this shower are associated with Comet Halley. Another, minor, shower peaks on May 8th. This is the Eta Lyrid shower and its radiant is always visible from our latitudes. The New Moon also occurs on this evening so the chance of seeing shooting stars from both of these showers are good.
Comet: There are no predicted comets visible this month.
Moon: The Last Quarter Moon occurs on May 1st with New Moon on May 8th. First Quarter occurs on 15th with Full Moon on May 23rd. The next cycle then begins with Last Quarter again on May 30th.