November 10
The Little Boat
Sun Position
The Sun is in Scorpius at about -19° declination. Northern Hemisphere evenings arrive well before 5 p.m. at mid-latitudes; Southern Hemisphere is enjoying long, warm days.
Sky Highlight
The North Taurid meteor shower is at or near peak activity. The shower is broad rather than sharp, a few nights on either side of the maximum produce similar rates. The Taurid complex is associated with Comet 2P/Encke and is notable for producing more fireballs than almost any other annual shower.
Deep Sky Object
M74 (NGC 628), face-on spiral galaxy in Pisces, about 32 million light-years away. One of the lowest surface-brightness Messier objects, it rewards patience and dark skies with a nearly perfect circular spiral structure. Best from northern latitudes in November evenings.
Featured Star
Zaurak (γ Eridani) is a red giant 203 light-years away, spectral class M0.5IIIb, slightly variable, slightly cool, drifting down the winding river of Eridanus. Arabic navigators called it the little boat, and on a dark November night its orange-red color is apparent to the naked eye against surrounding white and blue stars.
Around This Date
- November 10, 1970Luna 17 successfully landed on the Moon, deploying Lunokhod 1, which operated for 322 Earth days and traveled over 10 kilometers.
- November 13, 1971Mariner 9 became the first spacecraft to orbit another planet when it entered orbit around Mars, returning the first complete map of the Martian surface.
Zaurak drifts red along Eridanus, a variable star whose slow brightness changes would take years of patient watching to detect.