January 21
The Bull's Northern Horn
Sun Position
The Sun lies in Aquarius, about 20.2° south of the celestial equator. In the Northern Hemisphere the days are still short but lengthening; in the Southern Hemisphere this is high summer with long, warm evenings.
Sky Highlight
Elnath marks the tip of Taurus's northern horn, sitting near the boundary with Auriga high overhead on northern evenings. Visible from both hemispheres.
Deep Sky Object
Messier 37, the richest open cluster in Auriga, about 4,500 light-years away with hundreds of stars. Northern Hemisphere favored.
Featured Star
Elnath (β Tau), a blue-white giant in Taurus, about 131 light-years away. Elnath, the bull's horn-thrust, pointing toward the galaxy's far side.
Around This Date
- January 22, 1968Apollo 5, the first unmanned test flight of the Lunar Module in space, launched from Cape Kennedy, a critical qualification step before any astronaut would trust the machine to land and lift off from the Moon.
- January 21, 2019A total lunar eclipse was visible across the Americas and Europe, the last one widely visible from North America until 2021, turning the full Moon a deep copper-red for over an hour.
One star, shared by a bull and a charioteer, claimed by both.