Venus – Page 7 – A Darker View

The Moon and Venus

Tomorrow morning, March 26th, will see a brilliant Venus paired with a crescent Moon. Look for the pair to rise about 03:48HST to be 32° above the horizon at sunrise. An 21% illuminated Moon will be a nice match for Venus shining brilliantly at -4.3 magnitude. Separation will be about 9&deg.

The following morning, March 27th, will see the pair even closer with the Moon 6° below Venus. Observant sky-watchers will note Mercury another 18° closer to the eastern horizon and the rising Sun.

The Moon and Venus

Crescent Venus — Venus approaching inferior conjunction, 24Dec2013

Tomorrow morning, February 24th, will see a brilliant Venus paired with a crescent Moon. Look for the pair to rise about 04:00HST to be 33° above the horizon at sunrise. An 18% illuminated Moon will be a nice match for Venus shining brilliantly at -4.6 magnitude. Separation will be about 7&deg.

The following morning, February 25th, will see the Moon 7° below Venus. Observant sky-watchers will note Mercury another 16° closer to the eastern horizon and the rising Sun.

Seeing Planets in the Daytime Sky

We expect to wait until darkness falls to observe the stars and planets. While the Sun and Moon are normally seen in the daytime sky, there are other objects that may be observed.

Both Jupiter and Venus are bright enough to see fairly easily in full daylight if conditions are right. Saturn can be observed with a telescope if you can locate it. Very occasionally, we are treated to a daytime visible comet.

Jupiter and Venus are the easiest, you simply need to know where and how to look, but once glimpsed they are fairly easily seen. It is the knowing how that makes it possible. Try these simple hints…

Try when the planets are far from the glare of the Sun, in the first hours after dawn or last hours of the day are best.
Clean air is necessary. If the air is hazy, dusty or smoggy it will hide the planets from view, particularly when near the Sun. There will just be too much solar glare to pick out the planet. For the same reason try when the planet is high in the sky and you are looking through much less air.
The human eye will relax and defocus if there is nothing to focus on. This happens when looking at a plain expanse of blue sky. You could be looking right at the planet and not see it. A few puffy clouds around, or better yet, the Moon, will give the eye something to focus on, allowing the planet to be easily seen.
Put the Sun out of sight to reduce glare. Simply position yourself in the shadow of a tree or building to get a better view.
Pick a day when the Moon is near the object you are looking for, it will provide a simple signpost to the correct location.

It is this last hint that can be particularly useful. Looking ahead with the aid of a planetarium program you can find a day when the Moon is near the planet. Using the program to estimate the position with respect to the Moon you can look in just the right place. If you get it right the planet will appear as a bright star-like object. Once you see it you will wonder how you ever missed it in the first place.

Have a try.

The Moon and Venus

Tomorrow morning, January 28th, will see a brilliant Venus paired with a thin crescent Moon. Look for the pair to rise about 5:08HST to be 23° above the horizon at sunrise. A 7% illuminated Moon will be a nice match for Venus shining brilliantly at -4.5 magnitude. Separation will be about 6.5&deg.

The following morning, January 29th, will see the Moon 10° below Venus, halfway to the rising Sun.

Venus Appears in the Dawn

Venus is quickly rising in the dawn, appearing higher each morning. Today the planet will rise at 06:08HST, about 50 minutes before the Sun and be almost 12° above the horizon at sunrise. The planet will be quite prominent in the dawn sky for the next few months, reaching maximum elongation on March 22nd at 46.6° west.

When the planet rises far enough to catch in a telescope you will see a thin crescent that waxes a little each day.

Look for a nice pairing of this brilliant planet and a thin crescent Moon on the morning of January 28th.

Venus at Inferior Conjunction

Today, at 02:25HST, the planet Venus will pass through inferior conjunction, passing between the Earth and the Sun. Venus will remain hidden from view for another week, emerging in the dawn sky around the 18th. Maximum elongation will be on March 22nd at 46.6°W.

Unlike 2012 there will be no transit, from our point of view the planet will pass over 5° north of the Sun. The next transit will not occur until 2117.

The Moon and Venus

A very thin crescent Moon will appear below Venus in the sunset this evening. Look for a 1% illuminated crescent quite low, only about 10° elevation at sunset. Venus will be a bit higher, about 14° above the setting Sun.

Tomorrow evening will see the Moon much higher than Venus, reaching an altitude of 22° and waxing to 5% illumination.

A telescope will reveal that Venus also shows a thin crescent phase, only 3% illuminated as it approaches inferior conjunction, passing between the Earth and the Sun.

Venus Disappears into the Sunset

Over the next few days Venus will slide into the sunset on its way to inferior conjunction on January 11th. This evening the planet is 16° from the Sun, this decreases by about 1° each day. As the new year begins the planet will become ever more challenging to see as it orbits into the Sun’s glare.

Tomorrow night, January 1st will see a nice conjunction of Venus and a thin crescent Moon

The Moon and Venus

This evening a pretty crescent Moon will be about 8° north of Venus. The brilliant pair will be high in the southern sky at sunset, rather hard to miss if you take a moment to look up. Take note of how far the planet is from the Sun, Venus is currently near maximum elongation, which occurred on October 31st.

Seeing Venus in the Daytime

It is possible to see planets in the daytime. Both Jupiter and Venus are bright enough to see fairly easily in full daylight if conditions are right. You need to know where and how to look, but once glimpsed they are fairly easily seen. It is the knowing how that makes it possible. Try these simple hints…

Try when the planets are far from the glare of the Sun, in the first hours after dawn or last hours of the day are best.
Clean air is necessary. If the air is hazy, dusty or smoggy it will hide the planets from view, particularly when near the Sun. There will just be too much solar glare to pick out the planet. For the same reason try when the planet is high in the sky and you are looking through much less air.
The human eye will relax and defocus if there is nothing to focus on. This happens when looking at a plain expanse of blue sky. You could be looking right at the planet and not see it. A few puffy clouds around, or better yet, the Moon, will give the eye something to focus on, allowing the planet to be easily seen.
Put the Sun out of sight to reduce glare. Simply position yourself in the shadow of a tree or building to get a better view.
Pick a day when the Moon is near the object you are looking for, it will provide a simple signpost to the correct location.

It is this last hint that can be particularly useful today. Venus is about 8° degrees south of the Moon today. It helps that Venus is near maximum elongation, as far as it will get from the Sun for this evening apparition. If you can find the Moon high in the midday sky check just below it for Venus. The planet will be about a sixteen lunar diameters away from the Moon, seen as a bright star-like object.

Have a try.