Week of January 1-7: A New Year of Cosmic Wonder by Dennis Mammana on Creators.com

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Week of January 1-7, 2012: A New Year of Cosmic Wonder

I really enjoy the beginning of a new year. It's always brimming with hope and optimism — and lists of resolutions we swear we're going to follow through on but which usually survive only a few days at most.

There is one resolution, however, that can carry us through the entire year: keeping watch on the heavens to enjoy all the cosmic wonders they have to offer. And believe me, 2012 will be without question a doozy!

For the first few months of the year, the brilliant planet Venus will grace our western sky at dusk. If you think it's bright now, just wait until the end of April, when it appears more than twice as dazzling. And each month, it'll be joined by the delicate crescent moon to create a spectacle that gets everyone talking and gazing skyward.

Other planets will make a beautiful showing in 2012 as well. The red planet, Mars, reaches its brightest point in early March; that's when it'll outshine all the stars in the constellations Leo and Virgo, through which it will dance all spring and summer. Little more than a month later, everyone's favorite planet — Saturn — reaches its brightest point, followed in early December by the giant planet, Jupiter.

Meteor shower aficionados will be delighted to learn that in 2012, both the Perseid shower of mid-August and the Geminid shower of mid-December occur with no moonlight at all. So be sure to schedule a vacation day or two now while you're thinking about it!

Not all of the year's exciting celestial events occur during darkness; there are three in which the "star" of the show is the sun.

The first occurs on May 20, when much of North America will see a partial solar eclipse.

Those who travel to a narrow path from northern California through northwestern Texas, however, will enjoy an unusual annular eclipse in which the silhouetted moon appears smaller than the sun's disk and creates an annulus, or ring, of sunlight.

A couple of weeks later, we'll have another eclipse of the sun ... well, sort of. This time it won't be the moon involved in the celestial cover-up; it'll be the planet Venus that transits the face of our star. And you won't want to miss this because you'll have to wait 105 years to see the next one.

November brings the granddaddy of them all: a total eclipse of the sun. Sky-watchers from around the globe will take their vacations in Australia and the South Pacific to experience this most alien of celestial sky shows.

And then, of course, there's the "end of the world" on December 21, 2012. Yes, again. Mark that date because you won't want to be out of town, lest you miss all the fun.

You might like to join me and other well-known astronomers for some of these remarkable celestial events; if so, I hope you'll check my website to see what fun public tours and events I've got planned, and please feel free to drop me a note if you have any questions.

In the meantime, happy New Year, and get ready for a truly exhilarating year of cosmic wonder!

Visit Dennis Mammana at www.dennismammana.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.