Today Mercury will be at maximum western elongation, as high in the morning sky as it will appear for this current apparition. After today the planet will slide back into the dawn, passing through superior conjunction on April 9th to reappear in the evening sky around the end of April.
Mercury Events for 2015 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date UT | Date HST | Separation | |||
| Maximum Elongation | Jan 14 | 19:59UT | Jan 14 | 09:59HST | 18.9°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | Jan 30 | 13:40UT | Jan 30 | 03:40HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Feb 24 | 15:59UT | Feb 24 | 05:59HST | 26.7°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Apr 10 | 03:52UT | Apr 09 | 17:52HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | May 7 | 04:59UT | May 6 | 18:59HST | 21.2°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | May 30 | 16:53UT | May 30 | 06:53HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Jun 24 | 16:59UT | Jun 24 | 06:59HST | 22.5°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Jul 23 | 19:18UT | Jul 23 | 09:18HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Sep 4 | 09:59UT | Sep 3 | 23:59HST | 27.1°E |
| Inferior Conjunction | Sep 30 | 14:36UT | Sep 30 | 04:36HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Oct 16 | 02:59UT | Oct 15 | 16:59HST | 18.1°W |
| Superior Conjunction | Nov 17 | 14:45UT | Nov 17 | 04:45HST | |
| Maximum Elongation | Dec 29 | 02:59UT | Dec 28 | 16:59HST | 19.7°E |
| Source: NASA Sky Calendar and the Mercury Chaser’s Calculator, yes there appears to be a bug in the NASA sky calendar that always puts XX:59 minutes for the maximum elongation time. | |||||
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