November is a great month for viewing the night sky, with more hours of darkness, earlier sunsets, and plenty of celestial activity. You’ll get a good view of many of the well-known constellations, planets, star clusters, and meteor showers. November also brings us the last supermoon of the year.
While some of the astronomical events described are visible from the Southern Hemisphere, this article is primarily aimed at readers in the Northern Hemisphere.
Moon Phases
Before you go out stargazing, it’s good to be aware of which phase the moon is in, as the natural satellite’s light pollution can make fainter objects more difficult to see when it’s brightly illuminated.
- November 1-2—New moon
- November 9—First quarter (waxing)
- November 15—Full moon
- November 23—Last quarter (waning)
The next new moon after November is at the start of December.
All Month—Pleiades, Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars
Whether you’re working the night shift or you’re an early riser, November is a good month to look upwards.
There are
many stargazing apps
you can use to help you locate phenomena in the sky.
SkySafari
is useful because you can type the name of the constellation, planet, or star you’re searching for, and it’ll help you center the object. You’ll also have much more of a chance of seeing celestial objects away from city lights, and using
a light pollution map
can help you find the best locations.
Pleiades
Also known as the Seven Sisters, Pleiades is a very noticeable star cluster in the Taurus constellation. At around 445 light-years from Earth, it contains over 1,000 stars, although only six or seven of them are visible to the naked eye. With a pair of binoculars, however, the star cluster is a spectacular phenomenon. Notice its blue tint due to the stars’ brightness and the sheer number of points of light. You can see Pleiades all night throughout November and December, and it’s often the first thing you’ll spot when you go outside and look up.
Planets
Seeing some of our neighbors is quite straightforward once you know what you’re looking for and where to look. Where stars glisten in the sky, planets tend to shine brightly and more constantly. Luckily, you’ll have the whole month to observe Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars.
Jupiter will be the most noticeable planet throughout November, rising in the east-northeast shortly after sunset and becoming increasingly visible as twilight fades. It’ll be near the moon during the mid-point of the month. Given Jupiter’s brightness, it won’t take long to find it. Use a pair of binoculars to see Jupiter’s moons, which appear as tiny dots next to the planet.
Look in the southern sky after sunset to see Saturn. It doesn’t appear as bright as Jupiter, but it’s still clearly visible to the naked eye despite being over 1.3 billion kilometers away! If you’re lucky enough to have unpolluted skies, discerning this planet from its surrounding stars may be challenging.
A little later in the night, you’ll see Mars rising in the east. By dawn, it’ll be high in the sky. This planet is easily distinguishable from other objects in the sky due to its bold, red glow.
November 4—Venus Near Waxing Moon
Look southwest 45 minutes after sunset on November 4 to see Venus around 4° above the thin waxing crescent of the moon. At this point, Venus will be nearing the horizon, so you’ll have a greater chance of seeing it if you have an unobstructed southwesterly view, and you won’t have long to catch the pairing.
November 11—Moon-Neptune Occultation
If you have a decent pair of binoculars or a telescope, you’re located in eastern Canada, United States, or Mexico, and you’re in a dark sky area, you’ll be able to watch the moon appear to move in front of Neptune. If you’re not fortunate enough to be in one of those areas, you may still be able to observe a close conjunction between the two bodies. The planet will be visible in the evening sky in a southeasterly direction.
November 12—Peak of the Northern Taurids
Lasting from October 13 to December 2, the Taurids meteor shower is due to peak on the evening of November 12 in the Northern Hemisphere (if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, you can watch the Southern Taurids peaking on November 5). Although the Taurus constellation marks the radiant, if you’re patient (and lucky!) enough, you should be able to see up to five slow, long-lasting meteors an hour all over the sky in the right conditions. However, the moon’s light pollution will make this a challenging task.
November 15—Supermoon (Beaver)
The last supermoon of the year is the Beaver Moon. It’s called this because it’s the time of the year when beavers start to prepare their dams for the winter. It will reach its peak brightness and apparent size at around 4:30 PM (ET), but you’ll be able to appreciate it all night (provided you don’t have too many clouds), rising to 72.8º above the horizon in New York and setting the following morning at 07:48 AM.
November 16—Mercury’s Greatest Eastern Elongation
Since Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, it’s usually too close to our star’s glare to be clearly seen. It’s also the smallest planet in the solar system. However, on November 16, the planet will be 23° from the Sun, which is its greatest eastern elongation. As a result, if you look west directly after sunset, you’ll see the planet appearing brighter than most stars. It’ll be low in the sky, however, so try to get a clear view of the western horizon. As with most planetary viewing situations, you’ll benefit from using binoculars or a telescope. However, this will be one of the rare moments in the year when Mercury will be visible without any equipment in the right conditions.
Make sure the Sun has set fully before looking for Mercury. Never point binoculars or a telescope toward the Sun, as doing so can cause permanent eye damage.
November 17—Peak of the Leonids, and Uranus Opposition
The Leonid meteor shower lasts from November 3 to December 2, peaking on the night of November 17. The meteors for this shower will be bright and fast, and you’ll see up to 15 an hour if you’re in a dark sky area. Unfortunately, the moon will still be significantly illuminated (more than 95%) following its full moon phase, but blocking out any direct light will give you the best chance. While the radiant is in the head of the Leo constellation, as long as you have a wide field of view and let your eyes adjust to the darkness, you should be able to see this spectacle.
On the same night, Uranus will be opposite the Sun from Earth’s perspective. This means it’ll be at its brightest and most visible, rising in the east as the Sun sets and climbing overhead as the night passes. Given the moon’s brightness on November 17, you’ll benefit from using a good pair of binoculars and avoiding city lights.
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