During the next week Jupiter approaches and passes Saturn for their once-in-a-generation Great Conjunction on December 21, 2020.
On December 15, the razor-thin appears to the lower right of Jupiter and Saturn after sunset. The planets are 0.6° apart.
A little later as the sky darkens further and the moon sets, the planets are visible together low in the southwest.
Just 5 days before the conjunction the crescent moon shines beneath the converging planets. The planet gap is 0.5°, the apparent diameter of the moon in the sky. For the next several evenings, your pinky finger at arms length covers both planets.
December 17, the crescent moon appears to the upper left of the converging planets. The planets are 0.4° apart.
The moon is to the upper left of the planets. The gap between Jupiter and Saturn is 0.3°.
The waxing gibbous moon is to the upper left of the impending conjunction. Bright Jupiter is 0.2° to the lower right of Saturn.
One night before the conjunction, Jupiter is below Saturn.
Jupiter passes Saturn during daylight hours in North America and South America when they share the same celestial longitude – the definition of a conjunction. By nightfall the planets are still close in the southwest after sunset.
Conjunction evening! Jupiter is immediately to the lower left of Saturn.
Through a small telescope or spotting scope, both planets appear in the same field of view. Jupiter’s four largest moons and Saturn’s moons are easy to see.
A binocular may reveal some of the Jovian moons.
The planets are visible as separate “stars” to the unaided eye. They do not merge into a single point or suddenly brighten.
During the next week, watch the Jupiter move away from Saturn.
2021, August 2: Saturn at Opposition
August 2, 2021: Saturn is at opposition with the sun. Earth is between the sun and the planet.
2021: August 1 – 6: Morning Moon, Bright Stars
August 1 – 6, 2021: The morning moon wanes toward its New moon phase in the eastern sky. It passes the bright stars that are prominent in the evening sky during the winter season in the northern hemisphere. The stars have been making their first appearances in the morning sky during summer. At this hour, Procyon and bright Sirius are the last stellar duo to appear.
2021, August 6: Summer’s Midpoint
August 6, 2021: In the northern hemisphere, summer’s midpoint occurs today at 6:27 p.m. CDT.
2021, July 31: Morning Sky, Moon, Mira, Uranus
July 31, 2021: The slightly gibbous moon, nearing its Last Quarter phase, is in the southeast as morning twilight begins. It is near the planet Uranus, easily within reach of a binocular. Mira, a variable star, reaches its brightest next month.
2021, July 29: Mars – Regulus Conjunction
July 29, 2021: In a challenging-to-see conjunction, Mars passes 0.6° to the upper right of the star Regulus.
Categories: Astronomy, Sky Watching
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