January 30
The Amazon Star
Sun Position
The Sun lies in Aquarius, about 18.1° 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
Bellatrix, Orion's third-brightest star, marks the shoulder opposite Betelgeuse, a hot blue giant near the end of its hydrogen-burning life. Visible worldwide.
Deep Sky Object
Barnard's Loop (Sh2-276), a vast faint arc of gas wrapped around Orion, the remnant of an ancient explosion about 1,500 light-years away. A deep photographic target, both hemispheres.
Featured Star
Bellatrix (γ Ori), a blue giant in Orion, about 243 light-years away. Bellatrix, the female warrior, Orion's blue left shoulder.
Around This Date
- January 31, 1958Explorer 1 launched, the first successful American satellite, which discovered the Van Allen radiation belts and established that Earth is surrounded by trapped charged particles.
- January 30, 1989Soviet Phobos 2 arrived at Mars and successfully entered orbit, the first spacecraft to orbit Mars since Viking, and the last Soviet planetary probe to achieve orbit before mission failure cut short its planned descent to Phobos.
A blue shoulder burning fast against a faint old scar of gas.