On Jan. 14, the Huygens space probe is scheduled to land on Titan, a moon of Saturn. The Huygens probe is aboard the U.S. spacecraft Cassini, which was launched on Oct. 15, 1997. After a journey of more than six years, it went into orbit around Saturn on July 1 to begin a four-year study of the planet.

The Huygens probe, built by the European Space Agency, is a 700-pound, wok-shaped device loaded with instruments designed to study the mysterious moon Titan. Titan is the third-largest moon in the solar system but, more important, it is the only one to have an atmosphere. The Voyagers tried but failed to pierce the dense cloud cover when they made visits in 1980-81. They were able to show that the thick atmosphere is mostly nitrogen with hydrogen, methane and traces of many different hydrocarbons. Astronomers believe that oceans of liquid methane may cover the surface with any exposed “land” covered in a tarry mass composed of polymerized hydrocarbons.

In spite of having an atmosphere with the average temperature of -288 degrees and lack of water rule out any possibility of life. However, astronomers are hoping that the Huygens probe will answer many questions about this strange moon.

Focus on the planets

Mercury opens the new year situated just above Venus on the southeastern horizon about an hour before sunrise. The two planets are never far apart but will appear closest on the 13th of the month when only a few tenths of a degree separate them. Mercury becomes lost in the sun’s glare by the third week of the month.

Venus is unmistakably low in the southeast before dawn and can be used to spot Mercury and much dimmer Mars far to its upper right.

Mars rises in the southeast about 5 a.m. on New Year’s Day and is located to the upper right of Venus and just above Antares, the brighter “rival of Mars.”

Jupiter rises after midnight and is high in the south about an hour before sunrise. Jupiter displays a large disk this month giving viewers with telescopes a chance to check out its equatorial bands and other features.

Saturn lies opposite the sun from Earth, opposition, on the 13th of the month, which means it rises at sunset, is high in the south at midnight, and sets at dawn.

Uranus and Neptune both set with the sun this month and are lost to view in January.

Pluto rises at the same time as the sun and will not be visible this month.

January events

1 Sunrise, 7:13 a.m.; sunset, 4:05 p.m. The Earth is at perihelion, or its closest approach to the sun, today. Look to the southeast about an hour before sunrise for a close pairing of Venus and Mercury. Antares is to their upper right with Mars directly above the bright star.

3 Moon in last quarter, 12:46 a.m. Take note of Jupiter to the immediate left of the moon an hour before sunrise. The Quadrantid meteor shower peaks tonight. The shower appears in the pre-dawn northeastern sky and has in the past produced 60 to 80 meteors per hour, but the moon will make this a poor viewing year. Watch for the meteor stream to originate roughly from the area of the Big Dipper.

8 Mercury and Venus are a close pair to the left of the crescent moon in the pre-dawn sky. Antares is to the moon’s upper right, and faint Mars is to the upper left of Antares. Note: Comet Machholz, a naked-eye comet easily seen with binoculars, passes 2 degrees to the right of the Pleiades or Seven Sisters star cluster tonight.

10 New moon, 7:03 a.m. The moon is at perigee, or closest approach to the Earth, and the combination of these two events will likely lead to abnormally high tides.

13 Look to the east around 7 p.m. and locate the three stars of Orion’s belt. Well down to the Belt’s lower left is Saturn with Castor and Pollux to the upper left of the ringed planet.

15 Mercury and Venus are extremely close together just above the southeast horizon an hour before dawn. Mars lies well to their upper right.

17 Moon in last quarter, 1:57 a.m.

19 Astronomically the sun enters the constellation of Capricornus on the ecliptic but, because of precession, astrologically is just entering Aquarius.

23 The moon is at apogee, or farthest distance from the Earth, today.

25 Full moon, 5:32 a.m. The full moon of January is called the “old moon” or “moon after yule.”

31 Sunrise, 6:56 a.m.; sunset, 4:42 p.m. Look directly overhead some clear, cold January evening and see the Milky Way crossing diagonally from southeast to northwest.

Clair Wood taught physics and chemistry for more than a decade at Eastern Maine Technical College in Bangor.