Like Mercury, its orbit is closer to the sun than Earth these are referred to as the "inferior" planets , so Venus is visible before and after sunrise, depending on where it is in its orbit. That's why you may have heard the planet referred to as either an "evening star" or "morning star. On July 15, the crescent moon and Venus make a gorgeous pair in the western sky. With the moon only roughly 10 per cent illuminated, it's easy to spot the "evening star" just two degrees to the left of it.
Actually, if you want to give yourself a challenge, on this day, try finding Venus before the sun sets, using the moon as a guide. You can always try and use binoculars, too, but half the fun is finding it with the naked eye. For the next few months, you can find Venus in the sky after sunset, though it will be lower on the horizon as the days go on.
By October, it will disappear for a couple of months. It will emerge again as a "morning star" in the new year. Now you can find Jupiter, which is usually second-brightest to Venus, high in the southwest after sunset. On the night of the 15th, if you have a chance, look at Jupiter with a pair of binoculars; 7x50s would be best, but you can try with whatever you have.
Don't expect to see details, but you can see four of the planet's largest moons: Callisto, Ganymede, Io and Europa. Moving inward, Callisto will be the farthest out of the four Galilean moons, to the "west" or left of the planet, followed by Ganymede. Then Io and Europa follow, much closer to Jupiter you may not be able to spot Europa as it will be quite close to Jupiter. Go outside the next day and look again.
You will see the moons have moved position. On the 16th, Callisto and Io are on the left of the planet, with Ganymede and Europa to the right. Saturn, the ringed beauty, also joins Jupiter in the southern sky. After sunset, look to the south and you'll notice a "star" that is somewhat dimmer than Jupiter. That's Saturn. The planet is positioned in the south right above the "teapot" of the constellation Sagittarius.
If you happen to look at it through binoculars, it won't be the planet that wows you, but the multitude of stars. Here, we present a schedule below which provides some of the best planet viewing times as well directing you as to where to look to see them. Remember on Nov. On this date, the clock hour from 1 a. The mnemonic is: "Spring Ahead, Fall Back. Mercury — enjoys its very best morning apparition of this month. Each morning thereafter it rises a couple of minutes earlier, climbs noticeably higher and also gets noticeably brighter.
On Nov. For several mornings both before and after this date, Mercury will appear to rise prior to the onset of twilight, in a dark sky, about 1 hour 45 minutes before sunup.
At a brilliant magnitude of At around 5 a. After greatest elongation, Mercury will slide rapidly back toward the sun. By the 24th it's again rising about 75 minutes before sunrise, but still should be bright enough Thereafter it will disappear into the glare of the rising sun. Superior conjunction occurs on December 19th.
Through December it will resemble a striking crescent phase, getting progressively larger and thinner in telescopes and steadily-held binoculars. Learn more about Venus! Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in our Solar System.
Iron looks black, but the element takes on a reddish tinge when it has been exposed to oxygen, i. Coming off a spectacular autumn apparition in when Mars came within Positioned against the stars of Pisces, Mars is high in the south-southeast at nightfall and will not set until a. In the weeks and months to come, as Mars pulls farther away from Earth its brightness diminishes.
By mid-May it has dropped to rank of second-magnitude and it is setting before midnight. When it finally disappears into the sunset fires in late August, it will have receded to million miles million km away. It finally reappears late in November, low in the east-southeast sky.
It will be well on its way toward another bright opposition which will take place almost a year later on December 8, ,. Read more about Mars! Jupiter is usually the third brightest object in the night sky, after the Moon and Venus only Mars, our next-door neighbor, is occasionally brighter , and summer is an especially good time to view this bright behemoth.
Through all of , the King of the planets will be situated against the star background of Capricornus the Sea Goat. Brightest in : August 8 to September 2. Jupiter is at opposition to the Sun on August Learn more about Jupiter! Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun, and the second largest, after Jupiter.
It is one of the five planets visible from Earth using only the naked-eye the others are Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter. The famous rings are only visible in a telescope. They were at their maximum tilt toward Earth in October and are now closing to our line of sight. All through , Saturn will found within the boundaries of Capricornus the Sea Goat. Read more about Saturn! Uranus can be glimpsed as a naked-eye object by people who are blessed with good eyesight and a clear, dark sky, as well as a forehand knowledge of exactly where to look for it.
A small telescope may reveal its tiny, greenish disk. Uranus spends all of in the constellation of Aries the Ram. Brightest in August 28 to December Uranus will arrive at opposition to the Sun on November 4. Read more fascinating facts about Uranus!
Neptune is the eighth, and farthest planet in our Solar System and the first whose existence was theorized before its actual discovery. Neptune has 13 moons and takes years to take 1 trip around the Sun!
0コメント