Today Mercury reaches maximum elongation, the furthest point it will reach from the Sun in the sky and the highest it will be above the sunrise for this morning apparition. The planet is easily visible as a bright, starlike object about 15° above the rising Sun as the twilight begins. Over the next couple weeks Mercury will slide back into the sunrise, heading for superior conjunction on February 16th.
Date | Separation | ||
Superior Conjunction | Feb 7 08:54UT | Feb 6 22:54HST | |
Maximum Elongation | Mar 5 08:59UT | Mar 4 22:59HST | 18.2°E |
Inferior Conjunction | Mar 21 19:19UT | Mar 21 09:19HST | |
Maximum Elongation | Apr 18 16:59UT | Apr 18 06:59HST | 27.5°W |
Superior Conjunction | May 27 11:14UT | May 27 01:14HST | |
Maximum Elongation | July 1 01:59UT | Jun 30 15:59HST | 25.7°E |
Inferior Conjunction | Jul 28 19:54UT | Jul 28 09:54HST | |
Maximum Elongation | Aug 16 11:59UT | Aug 16 01:59HST | 18.7°W |
Superior Conjunction | Sep 10 12:37UT | Sep 10 02:37HST | |
Maximum Elongation | Oct 26 21:59UT | Oct 26 11:59HST | 24.1°E |
Inferior Conjunction | Nov 17 15:42UT | Nov 17 05:42HST | |
Maximum Elongation | Dec 4 22:59UT | Dec 4 12:59HST | 20.6°W |
Source: NASA Sky Calendar and the Mercury Chaser’s Calculator