October is a month in which the strange, weird and bizarre fill our imaginations. It is, after all, the month of Halloween.

On our modern calendars, Halloween falls squarely in the season known as fall. Yet to ancient Celtics, Halloween, which they referred to as Samhain, was the traditional start to winter. In other cultures this was the season when spirits and creatures from other worlds walked the Earth. The night skies of October are no different.

High in the northern sky, well above the Little Dipper, is Draco, the dragon. The tail of Draco begins about halfway between the Big Dipper and the star Polaris and winds a curling path between the little dipper and Hercules. The head of Draco is often confused for the Little Dipper, although its "bowl" is more of a trapezoid than a rectangle. The stars Eltanin and Rastaban mark the head of the Draco.

While Draco is the most unusual creature in the northern sky, the strangest creatures of the night sky lie in the south and east. Looking southwest is Sagittarius, the archer. Sagittarius is a creature from Greek mythology known as a Centaur. A centaur was classically depicted as being half-man and half-horse. However, Sagittarius will slowly disappear from view during October.

Trailing behind Sagittarius is Capricornus. Capricornus was half-goat and half-fish. In Greek mythology, Capricornus was a god that was half-man, half-goat, like a faun. One day, a monster known as Typhon attacked Pan. He jumped into the river. In his fear, part of him turned into a goat, while the part below water turned into a fish. Hence, the constellation represents both aspects of this mythological figure.

Rising in the east is the constellation Perseus, the hero. Perseus is easily recognized as a "J," or fishhook shape, just above the northeastern horizon. Yet it is the section of Perseus below and to the east that is most frightening. This area represents the head of Medusa, the gorgon. Medusa is marked by the star Algol, the demon star. Algol has always caused fear in humans, not only because it represents Medusa's eye but also because Algol changes its brightness over a period of days. This "winking" made ancient people believe the eye of the gorgon was opening and closing. Today we know Algol to be an eclipsing binary star system. A smaller, dim companion to Algol passes in front of the brighter star every 3.5 days, thus blocking its light for a short period.

For those who have trouble finding the strange creatures that populate the night skies, the moon is a seasonal favorite. It will slowly wane from Oct. 1 through 17, making the middle of the month a great time for observing by telescope. From there, the moon will slowly wax until it is almost full on Oct. 31. Don't get too excited, though, the full moon won't actually occur until the month changes to November. Yet it should make a beautiful light for evening activities.

There is another lunar special, which occurs on Oct. 26. On that evening, the first quarter moon will pass just 2 degrees from Jupiter in Capricornus.

October is a month when there are chills and thrills in the air. The landscape is barren and signs of the season decorate our homes. It is not surprising then that our ancestors populated the sky with the creatures that haunted their stories as surely as modern fears populate ours.

Rod Kennedy is a technician at the Casper Planetarium. He can be reached at 307-577-0310 or rodk@tribcsp.com