January 8, 2021: Speedy planet Mercury joins Jupiter and Saturn low in the south-southwest after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 7:18 a.m. CST; Sunset, 4:38 p.m. CST. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times for your location.
Find a clear horizon toward the southwestern sky. Thirty minutes after sunset. locate bright Jupiter low in the sky through a binocular. Saturn is dimmer and 2.0° to the lower right of Jupiter. With a brightness between that of Jupiter and Saturn, find Mercury 2.4° to the lower left of Saturn.
This observation has a narrow window of time because Jupiter sets 75 minutes after sunset. Mercury sets only 50 minutes after sunset.
Read more about the planets during January.
2021, January 26: Evening Planet, Mars
January 26, 2021: Visible high in the south after sunset, Mars is in Aries heading for an early March conjunction with the Pleiades star cluster.
2021: Early February, Equal Light, Darkness
Depending on the latitude, the time of equal light and equal darkness occurs during early February.
2021, January 22-24: Moon in Taurus
January 22-24, 2021: The bright gibbous moon moves through Taurus during the evening.
Categories: Astronomy, Sky Watching
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