Look Up: Virginia's Night Sky Between Now and New Year's

 The nights are getting longer. That's the bad news if you hate the dark coming at five o'clock. But it's good news for something most of us never make time for: looking up.

You don't need a telescope. You don't need to know a single constellation. You just need a dark spot, a little patience, and maybe a chair. Here's what's happening over Virginia between now and New Year's — and it's a lot.

October: leftover pieces of Halley's Comet

The Orionids peak the night of October 21–22. These are crumbs off Halley's Comet — the same comet your grandparents read about — burning up in our atmosphere at something like 40 miles a second. Expect around 20 an hour. The moon will be bright that night, so the trick is to wait until after it sets and watch in the hours before dawn.

A few nights later, on October 26, the Hunter's Moon rises. Big, bright, hard to miss.

Update: this moon earned a post of its own — The Hunter's Moon: Big, Bright, Hard to Miss

November: fireballs and planets

Early November brings the Taurids. They don't put up big numbers, but they're famous for fireballs — those slow, bright streaks that make you say something out loud before you can stop yourself. The southern Taurids peak around November 4–5, the northern ones around November 11–12, and that second peak lands near a new moon, so the sky will be good and dark.

Then the Leonids peak the night of November 16–17. Fast meteors, 10 to 15 an hour, and the moon sets around 10 p.m., so the after-midnight sky is yours.

November is also a good planet month. Jupiter and Mars are drawing together and meet up around November 14–16, sitting just over a degree apart in the eastern sky before dawn — close enough to cover both with your thumb at arm's length. And all month long, Jupiter and Saturn hang together in the southern evening sky. Binoculars will show you some of Jupiter's moons. A small telescope will show you Saturn's rings, tilted open at a nice angle.

The Beaver Moon arrives November 24, and this one's a supermoon — a little bigger, a little brighter than usual.

December: the main event

Circle December 13–14. The Geminids are the strongest meteor shower of the year — 120 or more meteors an hour — and this year the moon gets out of the way early, setting by 8 or 9 p.m. That leaves the whole night dark. If you go outside once all season, make it this night. Bundle up, bring a blanket, lie back, and give your eyes 20 minutes to adjust. It's worth it.

The Ursids peak December 21–22, but a nearly full moon will wash most of them out — you can skip that one without guilt.

December 21 is also the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. I choose to take that as nature handing us extra stargazing hours. And two nights later, on December 23, the Cold Moon rises — the second supermoon in a row to close out the year.

What to bring

I'm not a gear guy, but two things earn their place.

The first is a good sky guide. I have the National Geographic Backyard Guide to the Night Sky, 2nd Edition, and it's the rare book that's easy to read on the couch and still useful out in the yard. Take it with you — that's what it's for.

The second is a red flashlight. Here's why: your eyes need 20 to 30 minutes to fully adjust to the dark, and one blast of white light — your phone, a regular flashlight — resets the clock back to zero. Red light lets you read your book or find your chair without ruining your night vision. If you don't have one, here's an inexpensive rechargeable one.

That's it. No app required, no expertise needed. Just you and the oldest show there is.

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