Posted on: Tuesday February 4, 2025
Do you know how to tell the difference between a mammoth and a mastodon? Check out their smile!
In this video Erin shows us the differences between mammoth and mastodon teeth.
The Sky for February 2025
Posted on: Wednesday January 29, 2025
February is an often-cloudy month in Manitoba, but for those clear nights there are lots of planets to watch, as well as the last chance to spot the winter constellations before they disappear into the longer days of spring.
The Solar System
Mercury passes behind the Sun from our point of view early in the month, an event known as superior conjunction. It re-appears in the evening sky very late in the month on its way to its best showing of 2025 for northern hemisphere viewers in March.
Venus shines at its brightest this month, dominating the southwestern sky after sunset. In a telescope, Venus shows its crescent phase, which shrinks thinner and thinner as it moves between us and the Sun.
Mars is just past its best last month, but is still bright and easy to find in the southeast after sunset. By 10 p.m. local time it is high in the south, and sets in the west after 5 a.m. Mars forms a triangle with the bright stars Castor and Pollux, and you can see the planet’s orbital motion day by day as this triangle shifts.
Jupiter spends the month very close to the V-shaped star cluster known as the Hyades, which marks the face of Taurus the Bull. The bright reddish star Aldebaran makes a nice colour contrast with Jupiter’s clear white light. The group is high in the south as darkness falls, and is visible for several hours past midnight before setting in the west.
Saturn will finally disappear from view at the end of February, dropping lower and lower into the sunset twilight each day. What is the last day you can spot it with the unaided eye? It will depend on your eyesight, how clear your southwestern horizon is, and how clear the sky is. Saturn will swing behind the Sun and re-emerge into the pre-dawn sky in April.
Uranus and Neptune are both too faint to be easily seen with the unaided eye, although Uranus can be glimpsed as a very faint “star” from a very dark location, and both can be seen in binoculars. The trick is to tell which dot is a planet and which is a background star. An online app like Stellarium can help you track down these challenging targets. Uranus is in the evening sky west of Jupiter and the Pleiades, but Neptune is over near Venus and quickly disappears into the twilight.
Of the dwarf planets, only Ceres is ever bright enough to catch in binoculars, and only at the right time. Unfortunately, this month Ceres is setting soon in bright twilight as it passes behind the sun in late March. The other dwarf planets – Pluto, Eris, Haumea, and Makemake – require very large telescopes or imaging to spot.
Sky Calendar for 2025
All times are given in Central Standard Time (UTC-6), the local time for Manitoba. However, most of these events are visible across Canada at the same local time without adjusting for time zones.
Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025 (evening): The thin crescent Moon is very close to Venus in the evening sky. Neptune is just below the Moon but invisible without a telescope.
Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025 (evening): The First Quarter Moon approaches the Pleaides star cluster as it did last month, but it doesn’t starts covering (or occulting) stars until it has almost set for Manitobans. Observers farthest west will be able to see the Moon successively cover and uncover dozens of stars over the course of an hour.
Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025 (evening): The waxing gibbous Moon is above Jupiter, forming a ragged line with the bright star Aldebaran at the bottom.
Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025 (evening): The waxing gibbous Moon forms a small triangle with Mars and the two bright stars Castor and Pollux. The moon also occulted (eclipsed) Mars just a few hours before rising in Manitoba, similar to the event last month.
Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025 : Also on this date, Mercury reaches superior conjunction, on the far side (and slightly below) the Sun from our earthly viewpoint.
Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025: Full Moon
Friday, Feb. 14, 2025: The dwarf planet Ceres passes behind the Sun.
Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025: Last Quarter Moon
Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025 (evening): Mercury may become visible in the evening sky beginning on this date. It is *very* low in the southwest after sunset, and sets soon after the Sun. Throughout the rest of February it rises higher and becomes easier to see.
Monday, Feb. 24, 2025: Mercury is beside much fainter Saturn, low in the southwest after sunset. Saturn will likely be invisible without binoculars. Over the next few days Mercury will rise higher while Saturn sinks lower, finally disappearing into the sun’s glare.
Friday, Feb. 27, 2025: New Moon
Saturday, Feb. 28, 2025 (evening): The young crescent Moon joins Mercury, very low in the southwest after sunset. You will need perfectly clear skies and a flat horizon to spot them, and you’ll need to balance the darkening sky against the setting moon. Scan the skies beginning about 6:20 p.m. with binoculars, just above the horizon. This is your best chance this year to spot the thinnest possible crescent Moon.
Northern Lights, Meteors, and other Cool Stuff
Outside of the regular events listed above, there are other things we see in the sky that can’t always be predicted in advance.
Aurora borealis, the northern lights, are becoming a more common sight again as the Sun goes through the maximum of its 11-year cycle of activity. Particles from the Sun interact with the Earth’s magnetic field and the high upper atmosphere to create glowing curtains of light around the north (and south) magnetic poles of the planet. Manitoba is well-positioned relative to the north magnetic pole to see these displays often, but they still can’t be forecast very far in advance. A site like Space Weather can provide updates on solar activity and aurora forecasts for the next 48 hours. The best way to see the aurora is to spend a lot of time out under the stars, so that you are there when they occur.,
Random meteors (also known as falling or shooting stars) occur every clear night at the rate of about 5-10 per hour. Most people don’t see them because of light pollution from cities, or because they don’t watch the sky uninterrupted for an hour straight. They happen so quickly that a single glance down at your phone or exposure to light can make you miss one.
Satellites are becoming extremely common sights in the hours after sunset and before dawn. Appearing as a moving star that takes a few minutes to cross the sky, they appear seemingly out of nowhere. These range from the International Space Station and Chinese space station Tianhe, which have people living on them full-time, to remote sensing and spy satellites, to burnt-out rocket parts and dead satellites. These can be predicted in advance (or identified after the fact) using a site like Heavens Above by selecting your location.
Scott Young
Planetarium Astronomer
Scott is the Planetarium Astronomer at the Manitoba Museum, developing astronomy and science programs. He has been an informal science educator for more than thirty years, working in the planetarium and science centre field both at The Manitoba Museum and also at the Alice G. Wallace Planetarium in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Scott is an active amateur astronomer and a past-President of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
Manitoba Stories: In the Sky
WHERE are these rare plants found?
Posted on: Tuesday January 28, 2025
With a variety of ecosystems across our province, Manitoba also has a fascinating variety of rare plants. You might not think of sand dunes as the most hospitable of environments, but some plants know how thrive there!
In this video Dr. Diana Bizecki Robson shows us some of the rare plants that make their homes in sand dunes.
Did you know there are cougars in Manitoba?
Posted on: Tuesday January 21, 2025
A new exhibit has prowled its way into the Parklands Gallery and we can’t wait for you to see it! This exhibit showcases the cougar and shares the story of a specific cat named SK10.
In this video, join Dr. Randy Mooi in the Gallery to learn more about how this elusive creature came to be at the Manitoba Museum.
Did you know… Inside the Dioramas!
Posted on: Tuesday January 14, 2025
When we have temporary closures, it gives staff like Senior Conservator Carolyn Sirett an opportunity to do maintenance on some of the most beloved aspects of the Manitoba Museum – the dioramas!
In this video, she takes us inside a few of the dioramas to chat about some of the conservation work they do to keep them preserved for years to come.
Reconciliation in Action
Posted on: Monday January 13, 2025
Hello Manitoba Museum friends,
Happiest New Year. I wish you and your loved ones much joy in the year ahead.
I reflected over the winter holidays on the many changes we’ve made at the Museum in recent years. It’s been an intense and intentional period of transformation. In an organization’s life cycle, there are varying periods of operations; steady, growth, or decline. Occasionally, when an organization faces intense internal or external pressures, incremental changes aren’t enough. It must make an evolutionary leap. That’s what we’ve done at the Manitoba Museum over the last few years. We leapt. Our evolutionary leap has meant:
- Redefining our raison dêtre – reason for being,
- Recognizing, with gratitude and humility, that the ways in which we were operating no longer served our future,
- Renewing our vision and calling upon the courage needed to become something significantly different, and
- Releasing our grip on what was so that we could become a museum which not only honoured and continuously reexamined the past, but also one that would take meaningful actions to shape the future.
When an evolutionary leap takes place, the organization will either transform and realize a viable future, or it will miss the mark and face possible decline.
The Manitoba Museum bravely chose to change, work which will continue for many years to come. Thankfully, our efforts have been warmly welcomed by our communities, generously supported by donors, enjoyed by Members, and appreciated by partners, collaborators, and co-creators.
An important example of how we’ve changed is the implementation of a very important policy; the Indigenous Complimentary Admission Policy. Since actively promoting this policy in 2021 and working to strengthen our relationships with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples, over 60,000 Indigenous visitors have come to the Manitoba Museum to connect and reconnect with their own heritages, histories, artifacts, and stories.
There is perhaps no stronger example of the impact of our efforts to exist in the service of our communities than these new and renewed relationships.
Why is complimentary admission for First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples important, you might ask?
I’d like to take a few minutes of your time to answer this question.
Indigenous Complimentary Admission at the Manitoba Museum
In alignment with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), the Manitoba Museum proudly offers complimentary admission to all First Nations, Inuit, and Métis visitors. This initiative reflects a deep commitment to reconciliation, cultural revitalization, and the reclamation of knowledge and language.
Reconciliation in Action
The TRC’s Calls to Action urge institutions across Canada to take meaningful steps toward healing and repairing relationships with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. For the Manitoba Museum, providing complimentary access is a tangible response to these calls, embodying the principles of respect, inclusivity, and acknowledgment of the profound contributions of Indigenous cultures and histories.
Similarly, UNDRIP emphasizes the rights of Indigenous peoples to maintain, develop, and share their cultural heritage. By opening its doors to Indigenous visitors at no cost, the Museum acknowledges its role in supporting these rights and creating an environment where Indigenous voices, stories, and traditions can flourish.
A Shared Commitment to Cultural Revitalization
The Manitoba Museum recognizes the unique relationship it holds with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. For generations, the Museum has been a repository of artifacts, stories, and histories that bear witness to the vibrant cultures and resilience of Indigenous communities. Indigenous Complimentary Admission strengthens this relationship by actively supporting the practice and revitalization of cultural traditions—past, present, and future. Moreover, complimentary access also acknowledges the Museum’s problematic role in colonialism. The forced removal of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis artifacts, knowledge, and stories in order to fill the collections vaults at museums globally has robbed Indigenous communities of their own cultures. The Manitoba Museum is in the process of conducting a thorough assessment of its collections to determine their provenance – the record of an object’s origins and ownership over time. Repatriation, rematriation, and complimentary access are all steps the Manitoba Museum is taking to right these historic wrongs.
Through access to exhibitions, programming, and educational resources, Indigenous visitors can engage with artifacts and narratives that resonate with their heritage. This access facilitates the transmission of Indigenous histories, languages, oral traditions, ceremonies, technologies, skills, philosophies, writing systems, and literature to current and future generations.
Image: This Treaty No. 6 Medal, first presented to Chief Red Pheasant on Aug. 28, 1876, came to the attention of the Manitoba Museum’s former curator, Katherine Pettipas, in 2002. The medal was acquired by the Museum in 1994 as part of a large donation of over 25,000 artifacts in the Hudson’s Bay Company Museum Collection. Records and oral history indicate that in 1885 an Indian Agent removed it from the possession of Chief Red Pheasant. Pettipas contacted Red Pheasant Cree Nation to initiate the repatriation of the medal to the Community, and in July 2019 Red Pheasant Chief and Council formally requested the repatriation of the medal. Director of Research and Collections, Seema Hollenberg worked with Chief Clint Wuttunee and the Band Council to returned to Red Pheasant Cree Nation, which occurred at Treaty Days on July 3, 2019.
An Anti-Colonial Stance
Providing complimentary admission to Indigenous visitors is more than a policy; it is a conscious anti-colonial act. By challenging barriers to access and welcoming inclusivity, the Museum rejects colonial practices that have historically excluded or marginalized First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities. Instead, it creates opportunities for empowerment and self-determination, affirming the centrality of Indigenous perspectives in understanding Manitoba’s shared history.
Honouring the Past, Inspiring the Future
The Manitoba Museum’s commitment to Indigenous Complimentary Admission is a step forward in its ongoing journey of reconciliation and partnership with First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. It reflects a profound respect for the past and a dedication to inspiring discovery, learning, and connection for generations to come.
This initiative underscores the Museum’s belief in the transformative power of knowledge and the importance of sharing stories that shape our collective identity. By welcoming Indigenous visitors into its spaces, the Museum honours the rich tapestry of cultures and histories that define Manitoba and reaffirms its pledge to uphold the values of reconciliation and respect.
Removing Barriers to Connection
It is vital that the Manitoba Museum continues to remove any and all barriers faced by First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples in reconnecting with and experiencing their own cultures and histories. As an institution founded on colonial principles, the Museum acknowledges the need for definitive and direct action to change this reality. The Museum also recognizes that many artifacts held within its collection were not always acquired freely, fairly, or with proper compensation. Coercion, oppression, and systemically imposed policies resulting in poverty forced the hands of many First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples to engage in trade and commercial relationships that exploited them.
Image © Manitoba Museum, H4-2-527
We cannot change the past, but we are responsible for changing the future. By providing accessible opportunities for cultural engagement and education, the Museum takes responsibility for its role in shaping a more inclusive and equitable future for all.
Thank you for your support as we undertake this important work.
Sincerely,
Dorota Blumczyńska
Manitoba Museum CEO
Is the Manitoba Museum an independent organization?
Yes, the Manitoba Museum is an independent legal entity guided by its mandate, mission, vision, and values in its service to Manitobans. Unlike many museums in other provinces across Canada, the Manitoba Museum is not an arm of the government, nor a department or crown corporation.
The Manitoba Museum is a not-for-profit organization with charitable status. It is governed by a Board of sixteen volunteers who set the organization’s strategic priorities, approve Board policies and procedures, and provide judicious oversight of the Museum’s resources. The Museum is led by CEO Dorota Blumczyńska, who determines day-to-day operations including the implementation of the Complimentary Admissions Policy.
The Cougar – Manitoba’s Big Cat
Posted on: Friday January 10, 2025
Image, above: Visitors can experience a cougar and its skeleton up close and can experience the amazing journey of SK10 through maps and trail cam images. Explore the life of cougars through touchable paw prints, scat, and cougar screams and purrs. ©Manitoba Museum
The Manitoba Museum has a brand-new, permanent exhibit, and we invite visitors to pounce on the chance to see this exciting addition to our Museum Galleries. “The Cougar – Manitoba’s Big Cat” is an extraordinarily in-depth look at one of the most enigmatic creatures to roam our province.
“The Cougar – Manitoba’s Big Cat” is unique because it tells the story of one cougar, known as SK-10. In the spring of 2010, a cougar was born in Saskatchewan’s Cypress Hills. When he was just over one year old, he was given an ear tag, labeled SK-10, and fitted with a satellite tracking collar as part of a study by the University of Alberta. This study would reveal his remarkable 10-year journey through the prairies.
Have a staring competition with SK10 while experiencing the travels and lives of cougars in Manitoba. ©Manitoba Museum
Discover the inner workings of a cougar with a close-up look at its skeleton and understand how it is one of Manitoba’s most impressive predators. ©Manitoba Museum
SK-10 was destined to wander, but he traveled farther than any other cougar documented in the study. In just 100 days, he covered an astounding 750 kilometers, roaming through Montana before reaching Moose Mountain in Saskatchewan. His tracking collar malfunctioned that spring, but SK-10’s journey was far from over. From 2016 to 2018, he reappeared, caught on trail cameras in Riding Mountain National Park—a rare park visitor! He had traveled another 300 kilometers, reaching his final stop near Duck Mountain, where, in early February 2020, SK-10 was found accidentally caught in a legal coyote snare. This is where his journey to the Manitoba Museum began.
The Museum partners with Manitoba Wildlife officials and the Assiniboine Park Zoo to study and preserve any accidentally killed cougars. Placing the skin and skeleton in a museum gives the animal a second life of sorts, a lasting legacy by making it available for scientific study to better understand cougars in Manitoba and to tell their story to the public.
The skeleton of SK10 being mounted for exhibit. Each bone sits in a unique cradle that permits removal for later research. ©Manitoba Museum
SK10 arrives at the Museum from the taxidermist in April 2022. There is still a lot of work to get the cougar and its skeleton ready for exhibit. ©Manitoba Museum
The taxidermy mount and skeleton of the cougar are placed in the exhibit through a sealed back door to prevent damage from pests and dirt. ©Manitoba Museum
Because SK-10’s story is so extraordinary, the Manitoba Museum was determined to bring it to visitors as a permanent feature of the Parklands Gallery. “The Cougar – Manitoba’s Big Cat” is an incredible and unique look at the inner-workings of this powerful predator, providing a glimpse of cougar life in Manitoba.
Dr. Randy Mooi
Curator of Zoology
Dr. Mooi received his Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Toronto working on the evolutionary history of coral reef fishes. Following a postdoctoral fellowship in the Division of Fishes of the Smithsonian Institution…
Meet Dr. Randy Mooi
Museum Stories: DYK Discovery
Iconic childhood dolls!
Posted on: Tuesday January 7, 2025
In Cortney Pachet’s last video she shared some objects from our collection that might be surprising to some – toys from the 1980s! And now she’s back to share some more iconic childhood dolls from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s.
Will her ultimate artifact dreams come true? Watch to the end to find out!
The Sky for January 2025
Happy New Year, skywatchers! Although the “start” of our year is somewhat arbitrary, it’s a good time to look ahead at the events we will see during our next orbit of the Sun. We don’t have to wait long, though, for many of the year’s best events happen in January.
However, one “event” that is getting a lot of media attention is completely fake. The January 25 “parade of planets” or “planetary alignment” or whatever it’s being called is a complete fabrication. There is nothing happening on January 25th that isn’t also happening every other day this month, and last month, and for the next couple of months at least. See the “Solar System” section and entry for January 25th in the Sky Calendar for more details.
The Solar System
First: no, there is no “grand planetary alignment” or “parade of planets” on January 25th. What’s being claimed on January 25th has been happening every night for a month and will continue for another month – it’s the association with a specific date that is the error. Planets change their position slowly, being visible for weeks or months at a time. Any clear night in January you will be able to spot four planets in the sky plus Earth, and a pair of binoculars will add Uranus and Neptune to that total. Only Mercury will be out of sight from Canadian latitudes. This is NOT uncommon. But once again we see that interest in astronomy makes it the perfect vehicle to attract “clicks” and “likes”.
Anyway, on to reality…
Mercury was visible in the morning sky in December, but it now sinking back into the glare of the Sun. You *might* catch it during the first few days of the month, very low in the southeast just before sunrise.
Venus is putting on its best show of the year for northern hemisphere viewers right now, standing high in the southwest at sunset and blazing brilliantly. It reaches its greatest elongation from the Sun on January 10th, but it will be obvious all month for the first few hours after sunset.
Mars reaches its closest point to Earth this orbit on January 12, appearing bigger and brighter this month than any time since 2022. It’s also in opposition (opposite the Sun in our sky), so it rises in the east as the sun sets in the west, and is visible all night long. Mars is noticeably reddish compared to other nearby stars, a product of its rusty red plains. A telescope can reveal a hint of Mars’ polar ice cap and some dusky marking on the surface, but very steady skies and high magnifications are required. See image at right for a view of Mars in 2020, when it was even better than this year.
Jupiter was in opposition last month, but it’s lost almost none of its luster, standing in the southeast at sunset and rising high into the south by midnight. Alone among the planets, Jupiter will show some detail in a typical pair of binoculars: several tiny “stars” lined up with the bright planet. These are the four largest of Jupiter’s 95 moons. Jupiter in a telescope is a beautiful sight.
Saturn is coming to the end of its period of visibility this time around, shining in the southwest after sunset. Between the 13th and the 23rd, Saturn will sink lower while Venus rises higher, passing Saturn spending time in the same field-of-view of binoculars.
Uranus and Neptune are both too faint to be easily seen with the unaided eye, although Uranus can be glimpsed as a very faint “star” from a very dark location, and both can be seen in binoculars. The trick is to tell which dot is a planet and which is a background star. An online app like Stellarium can help you track down these challenging targets.
Of the dwarf planets, only Ceres is ever bright enough to catch in binoculars, and only at the right time. January 2025 is not the right time – Ceres is setting soon in bright twilight as it passes behind the sun over the next few months. The other dwarf planets – Pluto, Eris, Haumea, and Makemake – require very large telescopes or imaging to spot.
Sky Calendar for 2025
All times are given in Central Standard Time (UTC-6), the local time for Manitoba. However, most of these events are visible across Canada at the same local time without adjusting for time zones.
Friday, Jan 3, 2025 (evening): The waxing crescent Moon is very close to Venus in the evening sky.
Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025 (evening): The crescent Moon is above Saturn in the evening.
Monday, Jan. 6, 2025: First Quarter Moon
Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 (evening): The moon passes through the Pleiades star cluster, occulting many of its stars beginning about 6 p.m. CST. Watch with binoculars to see the Moon’s orbital motion in real time!
Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025 (evening): Venus reaches its greatest apparent distance from the Sun, making tonight theoretically the “best” night to see it. (It’s pretty much the same view for a week or more on either side of this date, though.)
Friday, Jan. 10, 2025 (all night): The waxing gibbous Moon is near Jupiter in the sky.
Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025 (evening): Venus begins to pass Saturn in the southwestern sky after sunset. The two planets are visible in the same field of view of typical 7×50 household binoculars. Over the next two weeks, Venus will slowly overtake and pass Saturn, which is slipping west into the sunset. They reach their closest approach on Jan. 18, 2025.
Sunday, Jan 12, 2025: Mars reaches its closest to to Earth for this orbit, almost 243 million km away. Like all planetary events, you won’t notice a difference between today and any other night this month because these distances change very slowly.
Monday, Jan. 13, 2025: The Full Moon eclipses Mars, an uncommon planetary occultation. For Manitoba, the Moon begins to cover Mars at 8:17 p.m. CST, slowly moving over the red planet over the course of about 40 seconds. About an hour later, the Moon uncovers Mars beginning at 9:04 p.m. CST (in Manitoba), again taking about 40 seconds to complete the reveal. Note that these times are different for different locations across Canada; consult a site like In-the-sky.org for local details, but make sure you start observing a few minutes before the predicted times – sometimes sites like these don’t take into account minor details like the elevation above sea level or the slight out-of-roundness of the Earth.
Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025: Mars reaches opposition, the position in the sky opposite our Sun. This and its closest and brightest for the year always occur within a few days of each other, and also mean that the planet is visible all night long.
Friday, Jan. 17, 2025: Mars forms an almost straight line with the stars Castor and Pollux in Gemini. Castor (the top-most star) is a pure white colour, while Pollux is more yellow. Both contrast with Mars-ruddy orange colour. The alignment persists for a day or so after this date as well.
Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025 (evening): Saturn and Venus are at their closest point as they pass each other in the southwestern sky after sunset (see entry for Jan. 11).
Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025: Last Quarter Moon
Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025: Nothing special. Literally, there is no significant difference between the planets this day and on any other day this month. The online stuff you have read about a “cosmic convergence” or “parade of planets” is completely made up. Yes, the planets appear to be in a line as seen from the Earth, but that’s true on every day of every year because the solar system is roughly a plane and we are one of the planets in the plane. It’s like saying that on a certain date, all the cars on the highway will be lined up, with none of them above or below ground level: it’s technically true, but completely meaningless.
Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025: New Moon
Friday, Jan. 31, 2025 (evening): The thin crescent Moon is below Saturn, very low in the southwest after sunset.
Northern Lights, Meteors, and other Cool Stuff
Outside of the regular events listed above, there are other things we see in the sky that can’t always be predicted in advance.
Aurora borealis, the northern lights, are becoming a more common sight again as the Sun goes through the maximum of its 11-year cycle of activity. Particles from the Sun interact with the Earth’s magnetic field and the high upper atmosphere to create glowing curtains of light around the north (and south) magnetic poles of the planet. Manitoba is well-positioned relative to the north magnetic pole to see these displays often, but they still can’t be forecast very far in advance. A site like Space Weather can provide updates on solar activity and aurora forecasts for the next 48 hours. The best way to see the aurora is to spend a lot of time out under the stars, so that you are there when they occur.
Random meteors (also known as falling or shooting stars) occur every clear night at the rate of about 5-10 per hour. Most people don’t see them because of light pollution from cities, or because they don’t watch the sky uninterrupted for an hour straight. They happen so quickly that a single glance down at your phone or exposure to light can make you miss one.
Satellites are becoming extremely common sights in the hours after sunset and before dawn. Appearing as a moving star that takes a few minutes to cross the sky, they appear seemingly out of nowhere. These range from the International Space Station and Chinese space station Tianhe, which have people living on them full-time, to remote sensing and spy satellites, to burnt-out rocket parts and dead satellites. These can be predicted in advance (or identified after the fact) using a site like Heavens Above by selecting your location.
Scott Young
Planetarium Astronomer
Scott is the Planetarium Astronomer at the Manitoba Museum, developing astronomy and science programs. He has been an informal science educator for more than thirty years, working in the planetarium and science centre field both at The Manitoba Museum and also at the Alice G. Wallace Planetarium in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Scott is an active amateur astronomer and a past-President of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
Manitoba Stories: In the Sky
Let it Glow? Glow in the dark rocks!
Posted on: Tuesday December 31, 2024
Did you know that some minerals glow under ultraviolet light? Join Dr. Joe Moysiuk in the collections storage to see four different glow-in-the-dark minerals, and learn why they glow under UV light.
Which of these colourful glowing rocks is your favourite?