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How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

  • How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Johnnny
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#1Jan 22nd, 2012
I havent been able to find any good resources on the net for helping me identify them.... And my princton field guide to stars and planets isnt helping me much....

Im in the southern hemisphere and just before sunset i seen one planet hugging the horizon, i think its mercury... Its night now and its gone...

Right now its 10:13pm and if i point at Orions star, Meissa, and bring my finger to the direction of the constellation Taurus i see a planet near Pleiades, close the the constellation Triangulum i believe... Im not sure which planet this could be...

Any advice would be appreciated

Thanks
Last edited by Johnnny; Jan 22nd, 2012 at 07:18 PM..
 
DaSleeper
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+1
#2

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Quote: Originally Posted by JohnnnyView Post

I havent been able to find any good resources on the net for helping me identify them.... And my princton field guide to stars and planets isnt helping me much....

Im in the southern hemisphere and just before sunset i seen one planet hugging the horizon, i think its mercury... Its night now and its gone...

Right now its 10:13pm and if i point at Orions star, Meissa, and bring my finger to the direction of the constellation Taurus i see a planet near Pleiades, close the the constellation Triangulum i believe... Im not sure which planet this could be...

Any advice would be appreciated

Thanks

If you have an IPhone or an IPad, there is an app called "The night Sky" which may help you......99cents +tax.
 
Johnnny
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+2
#3  Top Rated Post

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
naw i dont have an iphone or ipad.... I havent gotten onboard with that yet....

My personal preference is to be able to do it without the aide of technology...(I know im asking on the internet and thats technology)....

Im not trying to sound ignorant but my app is my brain... Like i tell new kids who i train in the forests... What happens when your technology runs out of batteries???? Can you use the stars to navigate at night, can you properly use a compass, do you know when your shadow is usful for directions...

Sorry little rant there
 
DaSleeper
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#4

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
heheh I can use the stars or the sun to get in or out of the bush...but as I got older I find that technology such as a GPS and other other devices could save me a lot of steps.....like when staking the corner posts of a claim in on single walk instead of pacing back and forth or hauling a hip chain or other measuring device.
When you give your exact co-ordinates, there is less chance of your claim being didputed.
 
lone wolf
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#5

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Once upon a time I heard stars twinkle and planets don't - but I never did see the difference

Planet will be in a different place tomorrow night
Last edited by lone wolf; Jan 22nd, 2012 at 08:24 PM..
 
Johnnny
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#6

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Quote: Originally Posted by DaSleeperView Post

heheh I can use the stars or the sun to get in or out of the bush...but as I got older I find that technology such as a GPS and other other devices could save me a lot of steps.....like when staking the corner posts of a claim in on single walk instead of pacing back and forth or hauling a hip chain or other measuring device.
When you give your exact co-ordinates, there is less chance of your claim being didputed.

True that bro, you know how it is..... Ive had to stake a few cut lines myself and i like placing stakes in the ground every 25-50m and shooting a bearing with my compass to keep em straight... The hipchain is still a favourite of mine because when going up hill the GPS measures the horizontal distance while the hip chain keeps 100m true up the slopes..... Honestly though ive seen the star app and everytime i go to my buddies i almost ejaculate when i fire up the program... Ive been holding myself back from getting it, but im not ready lol... I have ADHD so i gotta keep my white and grey matter growing and fit.....
 
Goober
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#7

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Quote: Originally Posted by JohnnnyView Post

True that bro, you know how it is..... Ive had to stake a few cut lines myself and i like placing stakes in the ground every 25-50m and shooting a bearing with my compass to keep em straight... The hipchain is still a favourite of mine because when going up hill the GPS measures the horizontal distance while the hip chain keeps 100m true up the slopes..... Honestly though ive seen the star app and everytime i go to my buddies i almost ejaculate when i fire up the program... Ive been holding myself back from getting it, but im not ready lol... I have ADHD so i gotta keep my white and grey matter growing and fit.....

I figure you could estimate a bearing and check it with a compass and be reasonably close. A GPS is just another tool. You can still use the grey matter, but double check with the GPS. If there is a discrepancy. Then the old grey matter is used to find the error.

I may be wrong, but i do not think so.
 
DaSleeper
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#8

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Quote: Originally Posted by JohnnnyView Post

True that bro, you know how it is..... Ive had to stake a few cut lines myself and i like placing stakes in the ground every 25-50m and shooting a bearing with my compass to keep em straight... The hipchain is still a favourite of mine because when going up hill the GPS measures the horizontal distance while the hip chain keeps 100m true up the slopes..... Honestly though ive seen the star app and everytime i go to my buddies i almost ejaculate when i fire up the program... Ive been holding myself back from getting it, but im not ready lol... I have ADHD so i gotta keep my white and grey matter growing and fit.....

If you're from Sudbury, you know that the area around Kapuskasing don't have many hills with an elevation of more than fifty feet in the area of a claim
 
#juan
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#9

Re: How do you identify the planets with the naked eye?

Jan 22nd, 2012
Quote: Originally Posted by GooberView Post

I figure you could estimate a bearing and check it with a compass and be reasonably close. A GPS is just another tool. You can still use the grey matter, but double check with the GPS. If there is a discrepancy. Then the old grey matter is used to find the error.

I may be wrong, but i do not think so.

Well, for one thing, the planets are not lined up for you to see all year round.
Some of the planets, you just won't see with the unaided eye. Pluto, Uranus, Neptune
will be beyond your unaided eye. Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, are quite easy to find if they are available. Venus, the evening star, can be
found near the sun at sundown. Mecury is a little more dificult because it is so close to the sun.

I would suggest you buy a small telescope, or a good set of binoculars.

.

Identifying planets with the naked eye......Saturn is a bright yellow colour and the rings make it easy. Jupiter will
also be obvious because of it's four prominent moons. The planet Mars is a definite red colour. You have to catch Venus
right near sundown because it is so near the sun. Mercury has the same problems as Venus but worse. Get yourself
a sky guide
 

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