The night Sky - April 2025

Mar 26, 2025

by John and Peggy Hurley

We hope you saw the lunar eclipse last month. We did. It was hard to see a change in the Penumbral stage but the Umbra was quite dark. The moon in eclipse looked like a pumpkin in the sky. The young moon will start this month near the Pleiades and you might be able to see the bright star Sirius, before sunset during this first week. Full moon will be on the 12th and New Moon the 27th.

Mercury and Venus are now rising just before sun rise, so you should be careful not to look at the sun. Mars will be high in the South West to start the night but set in the North North West in the early morning. Jupiter will set before 1am. Saturn will also be rising in the morning. On the 25th Venus, Saturn, the Moon, Neptune and Mercury will be in the east before dawn.

The Lyrid Meteor shower will take place April 20 -21. Best viewing in the early hours of the 21st. They should look like they are coming out of the constellation Lyra (one end of the summer triangle) so look away from the source and you will have longer trails of the meteor.

A rare event is expected soon. T Coronae Borealis is about to go Nova. This star is also called the Blaze star. It brightens dramatically for a couple of days every 80 years or so. T Cor Bor is normally just barely visible in binoculars. It is found close to the second brightest star in its constellation.

Corona Borealis means ‘crown of the north’ and it does look like the bottom two thirds a circle (a bit like a laurel wreath). To find it, start at the Big Dip per and follow the curve to the handle to the next bright star, Arcturus. Cor Bor is on the left side of the kite-like constellation (Bootes) about halfway back to the last Dip per star (check an app) T Cor Bor is actually binary stars; a white dwarf and red giant orbiting each other.

The white dwarf is stealing plasma from the red giant and when it gets too full it explodes! Astronomers have been waiting for this nova for about a year.

Since Coronae Borealis does circle the north pole, you should be able to find it now. Keep an eye on it. When it Novas there will be a new star in the sky!

Last month I suggested checking your outdoor lighting while the leaves are off the trees. I know, you don’t really want to hear about another kind of pollution, but light pollution abatement is usually a win win. It saves the environment and you money. If you have lights that are on constantly, do they really need to be? Lights left on show a would be intruder where the shadows are for them to hide in. A motion sensor light will at least alert to a problem even if both you and the intruder are a little blinded by the light.

If the lights do need to be on, consider putting a cap on them so the light only shows on the ground where you want it. Since you are aiming all the light down, you don’t need as high a wattage. Good lighting should not have a ‘hot spot’ where the light is from — you should not be able to see the source of the light from the side.

If you are lighting a sign, put the light on top and shine it down. Again, you will need less wattage to do that. Timers are also useful. Warm white or amber lights are better for people and most wildlife. Birds, fish and insects all need to know where the moon is and they will mistake one of our bright lights for it.

Your lights should also not interfere with your neighbours’ enjoyment, so ask. A light left on when someone is coming home late is one thing — left on all night is another. If you do need to do some abatement, try to start with the worst offender. Then try to change the lights as you can. I know there are a couple of lights I keep thinking are on-coming traffic on the wrong side of the road! We do have beautiful dark skies. We don’t want to loose them.

Being able to see the Milky Way, Northern Lights and Andromeda Galaxy are great tourist attractions. Clear Skies.