Sydney Observatory night sky map

A map for each month of the year, to help you learn about the night sky
December 2014
www.sydneyobservatory.com.au
This star chart shows the stars and constellations visible in the night sky for Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart,
Adelaide and Perth for December 2014 at about 7:30 pm (Local Standard Time) or 8:30 pm (Local Daylight Savings Time). For
Darwin and similar locations the chart will still apply, but some stars will be lost off the southern edge while extra stars will be
visible to the north. Stars down to a brightness or magnitude limit of 4.5 are shown. To use this star chart, rotate it so that the
direction you are facing (north, south, east or west) is shown at the bottom. The centre of the chart represents the point directly
above your head, called the zenith, and the outer circular edge represents the horizon.

South Celestial Pole
LMC
SMC
Centre of the Galaxy
ANDROMEDA
ANTLIA
APUS
AQUARIUS
AQUILA
ARA
ARIES
AURIGA
CAELUM
CANIS MAJOR
CAPRICORNUS
CARINA
CETUS
CHAMAELEON
CIRCINUS
COLUMBA
CORONA AUSTRALIS
CRUX
CYGNUS
DELPHINUS
DORADO
EQUULEUS
ERIDANUS
FORNAX
GRUS
HOROLOGIUM
HYDRUS
INDUS
LACERTA
LEPUS
LUPUS
MENSA
MICROSCOPIUM
MUSCA
NORMA
OCTANS
ORION
PAVO
PEGASUS
PERSEUS
PHOENIX
PICTOR
PISCES
PISCIS AUSTRINUS
PUPPIS
PYXIS
RETICULUM
SAGITTA
SAGITTARIUS
SCORPIUS
SCULPTOR
SCUTUM
TAURUS
TELESCOPIUM
TRIANGULUM
TRIANGULUM AUSTRALE
TUCANA
VELA
VOLANS
VULPECULA
SERPENS
Achernar
Adhara
Aldebaran
Alpha Centauri
Altair
Antares
Betelgeuse
Canopus
Capella
Deneb
Hadar
Mimosa
Rigel
Sirius
N o r t h
N
E
E
a
s
t
S
E
South
S
W
W
e
s
t
N
W



Summer solstice on the 22nd is the longest day of the year and gives Sydney 14 hours and 25 minutes of daylight. On 23rd at
8:45 pm Venus is near the thin crescent Moon low in the western sky. Mars remains visible low in the west during the early
evening and is near the crescent Moon on the 25th. The best time to view the Moon using binoculars or a small telescope is a
few days either side of the first quarter Moon on the 29th. Crux (the Southern Cross) is just above the southern horizon making
it difficult to locate.




2015 Australasian sky guide book
The 2015 Australasian sky guide has details on the
sky for the whole year, including rise and set times for
the Sun, Moon and planets, and tidal information for
Sydney. Available from Sydney Observatory, the
Powerhouse Museum and good bookshops (RRP
$16.95); also via mail order (postal charges apply) at
www.powerhousemuseum.com/publications/

Daily activities at Sydney Observatory
Sydney Observatory is open for night and day visits
every day except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and
Good Friday. Programs include telescope viewings,
3D space theatre and Sydney Planetarium sessions.
Bookings are essential for night telescope viewing.
Watson Road, Observatory Hill, The Rocks.
www.sydneyobservatory.com.au Ph (02) 9921 3485


Sydney Observatory is part of the Powerhouse Museum. The Sydney Observatory night sky map is prepared by Dr M Anderson using the
software TheSky. 2014 Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney.
Star Brightness
Zero or brighter
1
st
magnitude
2
nd

3
rd
4
th

Moon Phase
Full Moon: 06th
Last quarter: 14th
New Moon: 22nd
First quarter: 29th
Chart Key
Bright star
Faint star
Ecliptic
Milky Way
Planet
LMC or Large Magellanic Cloud
SMC or Small Magellanic Cloud
P
SOUTHERN CROSS
Moon on 29th
ERIDANUS
NORMA
Andromeda Galaxy
SCORPIUS
CIRCINUS
POINTERS
Achernar
FALSE CROSS
Betelgeuse
ORION
Fomalhaut
PISCIS AUSTRINUS
Aldebaran
M45 (Pleiades or
Seven Sisters)
Sirius
SAGITTARIUS
M42
Mira
DIAMOND CROSS
Orion's belt
Hamal
P
Mars
Moon on 23rd
Galactic centre
TAURUS
Eta Carina
Tarantula Nebula
Saucepan
Hyades
First point of Aries
P
Venus on 23rd