|
sometimes called the Harp Star.
• Try it! Just look northeast tonight in mid-evening. You'll see this bright bluish star shining above that horizon. From far south in the Southern Hemisphere, you can't this star until late tonight because Vega is located so far north on the sky's dome. Vega will reach its high point for the night around 3 a.m., at which time people in the Southern Hemisphere can see this star in the northern sky. As seen from mid-northern latitudes, the star shines high overhead at this early morning hour.
• Vega is a lovely star to come to know. When I was first learning the night sky, nearly 40 years ago, I spent hours, days, weeks, months poring over charts and books. So I sometimes came to know the names and whereabouts of certain stars before seeing them in the night sky. One soft May evening, I happened to glance toward the northeast. I was thrilled at the sight of Vega - gleaming, sapphire-blue - and surprisingly bright for being so low in the sky.
• Like all stars, Vega rises earlier each day as Earth moves around the sun. So Vega will ornament our evening sky throughout the summer and fall. Although Vega is considered a late spring or summer star, it's actually so far north on the sky's dome that you can find it at some time during the night, nearly every night of the year.
• Bottom line: It's easy to identify the star Vega in the constellation Lyra at this time of year. Just look northeast in the evening for a bright, bluish star above the northeastern horizon.
•
|
|
