Venus – Page 5 – A Darker View

Venus and Jupiter

The dance of Jupiter and Venus continues in the evening sky. Over the next few days we will see the pair drawing closer. Currently an obvious pairing in the sky after sunset, the two are just 4.5° apart today. With Venus shining at -4.4 and Jupiter somewhat dimmer at magnitude -1.8 it is hard to miss the pair.

The closest approach will be about 0.3° on June 30th at 16:14HST. Thus the evening of June 30th will see the pair at their closest for observer in Hawaiʻi. If you want to see the closest approach you can also try to observe the conjunction in the late afternoon sky. Both planets are bright enough to see in the daytime.

After this the pair will separate slowly and disappear into the sunset glow together.

At their closest the two will be easily close enough to bee seen together in the low power view of amateur telescopes. It makes a fascinating sight to see the two planets together in the eyepiece.

Venus and Jupiter

Over the next two months the two brightest visual planets will dance in the sunset. Jupiter and Venus make for a brilliant pairing. With Venus shining at -4.3 and Jupiter somewhat dimmer at magnitude -1.9, the two are already quite obvious in the evening sky. Jupiter will swing just north of Venus approaching to within 0.3&deg on June 30th. The pair will separate slowly after that and disappear into the sunset glow together.

Around June 30th the two will be easily close enough to bee seen together in the low power view of amateur telescopes. It makes a fascinating sight to see the two planets together in the eyepiece.

As an added bonus the planet Mercury will join the pair around August 3rd, the trio forming a nice triangle of bright planets low in the sunset.

Venus at Maximum Elongation

Today Venus will be at maximum eastern elongation, as high in the evening sky as it will appear for this current apparition. After today the planet will begin a slow slide back into the sunset, passing through inferior conjunction on August 15th and reappearing in the dawn during the first weeks of September.

Look for Venus to pass by the Beehive cluster around Jun 12th and have a close conjunction with Jupiter on a few evenings around Jun 30th.

Continue reading “Venus at Maximum Elongation”

The Moon and Venus

An evening conjunction of Mercury, Venus and Jupiter on 30 May, 2013

A very nice evening conjunction between a crescent Moon and Venus will occur this evening, March 22. The pair will be just under 5° apart and will grace the sunset until well after dark, setting after 9pm. Venus is currently shining brightly at -4.0 magnitude, a nice match for a 10% illuminated waxing Moon.

Mercury and Venus

Mercury and Venus will be in a close conjunction this evening. While the pair has been drawing closer for the last week, tonight will see them at their closest, about 38′ separation.

Look for the bright planet Venus low in the sunset. Mercury will slightly down and to the north of Venus. A separation of 38′ is just a bit more that the width of the full Moon. Both objects are fairly bright, with Venus shining at -3.9 magnitude and Mercury at -0.7. Bright enough to be quite obvious, the pair will be 17° above the horizon at sunset.

Over the coming week the pair will slightly separate. Mercury will be at maximum elongation on January 14th, after which it will begin its slide back into the sunset.

Mercury and Venus

Over the next week Mercury and Venus will rendezvous in the sunset. This evening will see the two separated by 48′, well under one degree. This will close to about 38′ on the evening of January 10th, just a little over the width of a full Moon apart. Both objects are fairly bright, with Venus shining at -3.9 magnitude and Mercury at -0.7. Bright enough to be quite obvious, the pair will be 17° above the horizon at sunset.

The Moon and Venus

This evening, Dec 22nd, will see a brilliant Venus paired with a very thin crescent Moon. Look for the pair to appear just 12° above the setting Sun. Venus will set at 18:50HST, about one hour after sunset. A 1.8% illuminated Moon will be a nice match for Venus shining brilliantly at -3.9 magnitude. Separation will be just under 6°.

Venus Appears in the Sunset

Crescent Venus — Venus approaching inferior conjunction, 24Dec2013

This week will see the appearance of Venus in the sunset to become the evening star. Look for a brilliant object rising a little higher each night. This evening the planet is 9° above the Sun, by the 10th the planet will be over 11°. Even low in the sunset Venus is easy to spot, shining brightly at -3.9 magnitude.

On the 22nd Venus will joined by a thin crescent Moon. Only 1.8% illuminated the Moon will be a beautiful pair with the planet, only 6° away.

Venus at Superior Conjunction

Today, at 20:55HST, Venus will pass superior conjunction, passing around the far side of the Sun as seen from Earth. The planet will begin to rise into the evening sky in early December, arriving at maximum elongation June 6th, 2015.

Venus Disappears into the Dawn

After spending much of the year in dawn skies, this week will see Venus disappear into the dawn. Superior conjunction will occur October 24th, with the planet appearing in the evening sky at the end of November.