Conquer Club

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20

■ Full Moon (exactly so at 10:57 a.m. EDT). The Moon rises in the east about 20 minutes after sunset for the mid-latitudes of North America. Right after dark, look three fists above the Moon for Alpheratz, the 2nd-magnitude head of Andromeda and the leftmost corner of the Great Square of Pegasus.

■ It's a busy evening at Jupiter. At 8:41 p.m. EDT the tiny black shadow of Io starts crossing Jupiter's face, entering on the east limb, followed by Io itself about an hour later. The shadow leaves Jupiter's western limb at 10:58 p.m. EDT, followed by Io an hour after that.

Meanwhile, Jupiter's Great Red Spot should transit the planet's central meridian around 10:37 p.m. EDT. Features on Jupiter remain closer to the central meridian than the limb for 50 minutes before and after they transit.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21

■ Once the Moon is well up in the east tonight, look left of it by about a fist and a half for the little Pleiades cluster. Can you pick out this sparkle-patch through the moonlight? Binoculars make it easy.

Look a little more than a fist below the Pleiades for orange Aldebaran on the rise.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22

■ The waning gibbous Moon shines in the east after dark this evening. You may need binoculars to pick out the Pleiades few degrees to its left or upper left, as shown below. Much easier is bright Capella many times farther left of the Moon.

As night advances, Aldebaran comes up below or lower left of the Moon. And by midnight, Orion is clearing the eastern horizon far below them all.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23

■ Tonight the waning Moon shines near Aldebaran, as shown below.