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About Tom Whiting
Expertise
Astronomy has been my hobby/pasttime for over 50 years. Currently own 3 telescopes, the largest of which is a 30 inch Newtonian truss Dob that is portable.I taught Astronomy/Meteorology at the University Level for 13 years before retiring in 1995. Being retired and home most of the time, I am able to answer all questions relatively quickly, unless it's a new moon weekend with good observing conditions. No astrology questions please, or questions about alleged UFO picture identifications.

Experience
Experience: Astronomy has been my hobby and study for over 50 years. We currently now own a 30 inch portable telescope (Updated - Pennsylvania`s largest portable telescope). It can be seen on our website at:http://www.velocity.net/~bwhiting and also attend several regional starparties during the year, and have been on 5 total solar eclipse expeditions.

Organizations: President, Erie County Mobile Observers Group for over 15 years.

Publications: Wrote the "Over Erie Skies" newspaper article in our local newspaper for 11 years (1975-86).

Education: Masters Degree- Taught at the University level for 13 years. Retired 20 years -USAF Pilot - KC-135 with 180 combat missions; Also Eagle Scout, Philmont staff 2 Yrs, Order of Arrow Lodge Chief, Ham Radio (inactive).

Awards: two discoveries: The mini-coathanger asterism in Ursa Minor (the little dipper) And the mini-ladle- another asterism in the bowl of Ursa Minor. Clients: Currently President of the ECMOG as mentioned above.

Education/Credentials
BS Metallurgical Engineering Grove City College, PAMaster's Degree, Gannon University, Erie, PA Also retired USAF pilot, 20 years.

You are here: Experts > Science > Space and Astronomy for Kids > Astronomy > Orange Oscillating Star

Astronomy - Orange Oscillating Star

Expert: Tom Whiting - 10/28/2009

Question
Hi, I live in Omaha, NE. Currently in the night sky beginning at dusk I can see a yellow/orange star which appears to oscillate. It is approximately Northeast and about 25-30 degrees up from the horizon. I have tried to find the name and some information but the descriptions to find stars using the constellations as reference are a little too much for my mind after a hard day at work. Can you offer any information? Thank you so much!

Answer
Hi Vicki,
Yes, that is the very bright zero magnitude star Capella in the constellation Auriga.
It's common name is Capella, and since it's the brightest star in that pentagon-shaped
constellation (area of sky), it's astronomical name is Alpha Aurigae.
(Zero magnitude means it's 2.5 times brighter than the typical first magnitude star)....
it's a reverse scale...the lower the number, the brighter the object....Venus is -4th,
the full moon -13th and the sun -26th magnitude.
There are only 4 zero magnitude stars in our northern sky...Vega, Capella, Rigel, and Arcturus.
Capella is a yellow star. (The color denotes the star's 'surface' temperature, or temperature
of the photophere layer)... blue is hot, red is cool.

The twinkling (oscillating) that you see is simply our atmosphere affecting the star. If we didn't have an atmosphere, all stars would be steady pinpoints all the way down to the horizon, with no twinkling, no color change, no swelling up, no nothing. Anything out of the ordinary...it's all our atmosphere affecting it. This is true for every body in the sky, even the red sunsets and flattened colorful full moonrises that we see...and rainbows, and haloes, and sun pillars, and on and on....all atmospherics.

Typically the brightest star in a constellation (area of sky) is designated the alpha star,
then beta, then gamma and right down the Greek Alphabet, LOWER case letters, not upper case.
(Astronomers know all the lower case greek letters and none of the upper case). ;-)
Followed by the genitive case (did you take Latin? No, then it's the possessive case)
of the constellation. Take the name Alpha Centauri, closest star to the solar system.
You think they pulled that neme out of a hat? No, there is a southern hemisphere constellation
called Centaurus. Brightest star in that area is Alpha, followed by the genitive case, thus
Alpha Centauri. There is also a star Beta Centauri, Gamma Centauri, and so on. That's our naming
system. What happens when you run out of the 24 greek letters? Then you go to Flamsteed numbers,
like 61 Cygni in Cygnus, 51 Pegasi in Pegasus...that's how it, our system works.
So now you know the rest of the story....I know, way beyond what you asked for.
Sometimes I get on a roll..... ;-)
Clear Skies,
Tom Whiting
Erie, PA

FOLLOW UP:
Get up at 4 am daylight time, go outside, and Capella will be very close to your zenith,
straight overhead, at this time of the year. (That becomes 3 am on November 1st.)
Tom

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