Today Mercury reaches maximum elongation, the furthest point it will reach from the Sun in our sky and the highest it will be above the sunset for this evening apparition. The planet is easily visible as a bright, starlike object about 18° above the setting Sun as twilight begins. Over the next couple weeks Mercury will slide back into the sunset, heading for inferior conjunction on February 15th.
Mercury Events for 2014 |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date UT | Date HST | Separation | |||
| Maximum Elongation | Jan 31 | 09:59UT | Jan 30 | 23:59HST | 18.4°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | Feb 15 | 20:13UT | Feb 15 | 10:13HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Mar 14 | 05:59UT | Mar 13 | 19:59HST | 27.6°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Apr 26 | 03:07UT | Apr 25 | 17:07HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | May 25 | 06:59UT | May 24 | 20:59HST | 22.7°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | Jun 19 | 22:42UT | Jun 19 | 12:42HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Jul 12 | 17:59UT | Jul 12 | 07:59HST | 20.9°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Aug 8 | 16:05UT | Aug 8 | 06:05HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Sep 21 | 21:59UT | Sep 21 | 11:59HST | 26.4°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | Oct 16 | 20:32UT | Oct 16 | 10:32HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Nov 1 | 11:59UT | Nov 1 | 01:59HST | 18.7°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Dec 8 | 09:37UT | Dec 7 | 23:37HST | |
| Source: NASA Sky Calendar and the Mercury Chaser’s Calculator | |||||
|
|
|||||
Share this:
