EarthSky News - Feb 6 - Lost Continent, Vanishing Ice Volcanoes

February 6 Lost Continent, Vanishing Ice Volcanoes by:

Lost continent under Indian Ocean? Evidence of a "lost continent," thought to be leftover after the ancient supercontinent Gondwana began breaking up some 200 million years ago. Vanishing ice volcanoes on Ceres? Dwarf planet Ceres - largest body in the asteroid belt - has at least 1 known ice volcano. But that volcano might also have older siblings that disappeared over millions of years. Jupiter starts retrograde today The best time to look for Jupiter is just ahead. A bright star, Spica in the constellation Virgo, is right next to it. What is retrograde motion? Retrograde motion of Jupiter or Mars or Saturn in our sky is an illusion, caused by Earth's passing these slower-moving outer worlds. But there's a real retrograde motion, too.

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Jupiter starts retrograde today Jupiter is the brighter of the 2 starlike objects in the upper right of this January 22 photo by Niko Powe in Kewanee, Illinois. The other starlike object is the star Spica. The very bright object is the moon!

Venus over Chicago skyline Venus shines so brightly after sunset now that even the lights of Chicago can't hide it! Jake Gantz caught this photo on February 3. Venus is now approaching its time of greatest brilliancy. Submit your photo to EarthSky here!

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