November 23 2020: Brilliant Morning Star Venus and Mercury shine from the east-southeast before sunrise. Venus is stepping eastward in Virgo, to the lower left of Spica. Mercury is becoming more difficult to see as it shines from near the horizon to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:50 a.m. CST; Sunset, 4:24 p.m. CST. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times for your location.
About an hour before sunrise, Venus is low in the east-southeast. It is stepping eastward in Virgo, to the lower left of Spica. It is near the dim star Kappa Virginis (κ Vir). Mercury is completing its best morning appearance of the year, and shines from low in the east-southeast, nearly 15° to the lower left of Venus.
Looking through a binocular, you can see Venus 2.6° to the upper right of κ Vir, while Mercury is 2.1° to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi.
Look for Mercury about 45 minutes before sunrise. It is very low in the east-southeast.
Detailed note: One hour before sunrise, Venus is 15.0° in altitude in the east-southeast, 2.6° to the upper right of κ Vir. Fifteen minutes later, Mercury is nearly 5° up in the east-southeast, 2.1° to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi. The Venus – Mercury gap is 14.7°.
See our summary about Venus during November 2020 and the feature article about Venus as a Morning Star.
Read more about the planets during November.
2020, December 11: Jupiter, Saturn Conjunction Nears, Mars in Southeast
December 11, 2020: The Great Conjunction countdown: 10 days! Jupiter and Saturn are low in the southwest as night falls. Jupiter continues to close the gap to the Ringed Wonder. Farther eastward, Mars marches eastward in Pisces.
2020, December 11: Moon Nears Venus
December 11, 2020: As sunrise approaches, the crescent moon is to the upper right of the brilliant planet Venus.
2020, December 10: Bright Mars in East, Jupiter Closes on Saturn
December 10, 2020: The Great Conjunction countdown: 11 days. Jupiter and Saturn are in the southwest as night falls. Bright Mars is in the southeast.
Categories: Astronomy, Sky Watching
