Morning Stars Venus and Jupiter shine through a clear predawn sky this morning in this 30-second exposure made at 4:05 a.m. CDT from the Chicago area. Both planets are visible well into morning twilight in the eastern sky.
Brilliant planet Venus continues its rapid eastward movement compared to the starry background. It is now among the stars of Gemini. It will pass Pollux, one of the Gemini twins, in just a week. Compare this morning’s view of Venus to where it was about a month ago. To the right along the horizon is Orion. In this view, its bright star Betelgeuse is in view.
Slower moving, but still very bright, planet Jupiter continues its eastward trek as well as it shines near Aldebaran and the Hyades star cluster, both part of Taurus. The Pleiades star cluster is nearly out of the frame from the eastward movement of the planets.
Watch the planetary pair in the morning sky throughout this month. Read more about Venus as a Morning Star. For our monthly sky watching posting, click here. (Click the image to see it larger.)