1月最好的观天时刻

1月最好的观天时刻

The year 2020 is expected to provide an amazing array of skywatching opportunities, as MNN's Michael d'Estries made clear. Nearly every night of the year, the sky provides a celestial spectacle worth staying up for, but it helps to focus on the highlights.

正如MNN的迈克尔·德埃斯特里斯所说，预计2020年将提供一系列令人惊叹的观看天空的机会。一年中几乎每个夜晚，天空都会呈现出值得我们熬夜观赏的天象，但它有助于我们集中精力观看最精彩的部分。

The Milky Way's Galactic Center in the night sky above Paranal Observatory. (Photo: ESO)

Below are a handful of worth-the-effort stargazing opportunities you can catch this month.

以下是几个值得一试的观星机会，你可以在这个月抓住。

Quadrantids meteor shower

四象限流星雨

A Quadrantid meteor lights up the sky above New Mexico. (Photo: Mike Lewinski [CC BY 2.0]/Flickr)

The Quadrantids, an annual meteor shower producing upwards of 100 shooting stars an hour, peaked at the beginning of the month. The shower is the result of Earth passing through a debris field created by a fractured comet some 500 years ago.

每年一次的“四象限”流星雨每小时产生100多颗流星，在本月初达到高峰。这场流星雨是大约500年前地球穿过一颗破碎的彗星形成的碎片区域的结果。

Wolf Moon eclipse (Jan. 10-11)

狼月蚀(1月10-11日)

The beginning of the super blood wolf moon eclipse from Jan. 20, 2019. (Photo: RobDun/Shutterstock)

The Wolf Moon eclipse on Jan. 10 is the first of many full moons this year and it's also the first of several penumbral lunar eclipses. A penumbral eclipse is when the Earth’s lighter outer shadow (penumbra) covers the moon, so it's more subtle. The eclipse will occur during the full moon phase. These two events combined mean the moon will appear slightly darker than usual.

1月10日的狼月月食是今年许多满月中的第一次，也是几次半影月食中的第一次。半影月食是指地球较浅的外部阴影(半影)覆盖月球，所以比较微妙。月食将发生在满月阶段。这两件事合在一起意味着月亮看起来会比平常略暗。

Those living in Australia, Asia, Africa, Northern Europe, northern Canada and Alaska can expect the best visibility of the eclipse. For people in most of North and South America, it will be almost impossible to see because the full moon will hit its peak around 2:21 p.m. EST — in the middle of the day. No worries though, as plenty of penumbral eclipse opportunities are set to happen this year, with the next occurring on June 5.

那些生活在澳大利亚、亚洲、非洲、北欧、加拿大北部和阿拉斯加的人可以期待看到最好的日食。对于北美和南美大部分地区的人们来说，这几乎是不可能看到的，因为满月将在美国东部时间下午2点21分左右达到顶峰——在一天的中间。不过不用担心，因为今年将有大量的半影日食机会发生，下一次将在6月5日发生。

Venus grows brighter in the night sky

金星在夜空中变得更亮

The planet of Venus as captured in visible light. Carl Sagan first posed a question about what could survive in the clouds of Venus, which have more favorable conditions than the surface of the planet. (Photo: NASA)

The Earth's celestial neighbor is set to grow brighter as we progress into the month. Venus will be easy to spot in the western sky from now until May. But this month the planet named after the goddess of love and beauty will be bright enough to see with the naked eye, say the experts at EarthSky. Venus peeks out after sunset for between two and three hours a night throughout the month.

随着我们进入这个月，地球的天体邻居将变得更加明亮。从现在到五月，金星将很容易在西方天空中被发现。但据EarthSky的专家称，本月以爱与美的女神命名的行星将足够明亮，可以用肉眼看到。金星在日落之后会在一个月内每晚有2到3个小时的时间向外张望。

On Jan. 27, you can use the brightness of Venus as a starting point to see Neptune with a telescope. Once you locate Venus — which will be bright and visible — direct the telescope down and a bit to the right. You should see what looks like a dim blue star. In addition, you can use the young waxing crescent moon on the 27th and 28th as a guide to see Mercury. What a bevy of planets to find in this exciting celestial month!

1月27日，你可以用望远镜以金星的亮度为起点来观察海王星。一旦你确定了金星的位置——它将是明亮可见的——将望远镜向下并向右一点。你应该能看到一颗暗淡的蓝星。另外，你可以利用27日和28日的新月作为向导去看水星。在这个激动人心的天象月里，将会发现一大堆行星!