PAGASA: Expect longer nights and shorter days

September could be the month for hopeless romantics and avid stargazers not only because nights will start to become longer and days shorter, but also because the planets Mars and Venus will be moving closer to each other. According to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), many stars and planets will also be visible to stargazers this month. "Philippine nights will be longer as the sun approaches the celestial equator," said PAGASA officer-in-charge Graciano Yumul Jr. in the agency's astronomical diary for September. On September 11, Mars and Venus and the crescent moon will be found close to one another while Saturn will be found low in the western horizon. "Mars and Venus will be visible throughout the month while Saturn will gradually cease to view as days pass by," he said. Yumul also said that an "autumnal equinox will occur on September 23 when day and night will have equal length on Earth." An equinox occurs twice a year when the tilt of Earth's axis is neither inclined towards nor away from the sun. When an equinox occurs, the center of the sun in the same plane as the Earth's equator. The term "equinox" is derived from the Latin words "aequus" (meaning equal) and "nox" (meaning "night") because when an equinox occurs, the length of the day becomes approximately equal to that of the night. The planet Mercury will lie low in the eastern horizon before sunrise throughout September. It will be 10 degrees above the eastern horizon by the middle of the month. At around 7:00 p.m. on September 23, planet Jupiter will be less than one degree (0.9) to the south of the planet Uranus. "One degree" is approximately twice the width of the moon. Both planets will be found at 18 degrees above the eastern horizon and will be glowing at a magnitude -2.8 and +5.7, respectively. "Under perfectly cloudless dark sky condition in rural locations, Uranus can be spotted by people with good eyesight and who knows the exact position. Few people have actually seen it without the aid of a binocular or telescope," Yumul said. Jupiter and Uranus will lie among the background stars of the constellation Pisces (the Fish) he added. The planet Neptune will be found among the background stars of the constellation Capricornus (the Sea-Goat). It will stand 42 degrees above the east southeastern horizon at around 7:00 p.m. on September 19. A modest size telescope will be needed to observe the Neptune, the bluish planet, Yumul said. Meanwhile, Yumul said the rich band of constellations and stars along the Milky Way— from the constellations Cygnus (the Swan), in the north to Sagittarius and Scorpius in the south — will begin to give way this month to fainter constellations. "The famous asterism Teapot in the sky in the constellation of Sagittarius can be observed at about 40 to 47 degrees above the southern horizon, an hour after sunset," he said. Winter Triangle Betelgeuse, the super giant red star of the constellation Orion (the Mighty Hunter), will be located at about 25 degrees to the upper right of Mars. Sirius, the brightest star in the sky of the constellation Canis Major (the Big Dog), will be an easy target as it glows below the constellation of Orion. Procyon, the brightest star of the constellation Canis Minor (the Little Dog) can be located at the lower left of Canis Major. "By drawing an imaginary line among the bright stars of these constellations, an equilateral triangle will be formed called the Winter Triangle," Yumul said. –VVP, GMANews.TV