August 23, 2024: Mars approaches the Bull’s horns in the east-southeast before sunrise. It is to the lower left of bright Jupiter. Saturn and the gibbous moon are in the southwestern sky.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Sky events are described at time intervals relative to sunrise or sunset. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
Morning Sky
Mars Approaches the Bull’s Horns
This morning Mars is nearly between the Bull’s horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri. The Red Planet is marching eastward, opening a gap with bright Jupiter.
At one hour before sunrise, here’s what to look for:
Bright Jupiter is over halfway up in the east-southeast. It is the brightest star in the sky this morning. The Jovian Giant is 9.1° to Aldebaran’s lower left, Taurus’ brightest star.
Mars, about the same brightness and color as Aldebaran, is 4.4° to Jupiter’s lower left. After their conjunction on the 14th, Mars continues to open a gap to the solar system’s largest planet. Mars is 5.7° to the lower right of Elnath, the Bull’s second brightest star, and 3.4° to Zeta Tauri’s upper right.
Tomorrow morning, Mars passes 5.6° from Elnath and Zeta Tauri on the 27th. The gap to the southern horn is 2.6°.
From the Americas, Mars does not appear precisely between the horns. On the 26th, it is west of an imaginary line between them, and the next morning, it is to the east.
Saturn, Moon
At this hour, the moon, 82% illuminated, is over halfway up in the south-southwest, nearly 35° to Saturn’s upper left and less than 60° to the right or west of Jupiter.
Saturn is slowly retrograding in front of Aquarius’ dim stars. Saturn is at opposition on September 7th, when Earth passes between the planet and the sun.
Mercury
Mercury speeds into the morning sky after its inferior conjunction, although it is veiled in bright twilight this morning. The innermost planet rises 21 minutes before the sun, gaining about eight minutes of rising time each morning.
Evening Sky
Venus
Venus slowly climbs into the evening sky. The planet’s visibility suffers from a poorly inclined ecliptic, another name for the solar system’s plane, with the western horizon. The Evening Star is 22° east of the sun, but only about 5° above the western horizon at 30 minutes after sundown.
Venus shines through bright evening twilight. Use a binocular to initially locate it.
Evening Saturn
Saturn rises only 40 minutes after sundown. About an hour later, it is over 10° above the east-southeast horizon.
Moonrise occurs over two hours after nightfall. This evening the lunar orb is 45° from Saturn.
Tomorrow morning, they are in the southern sky before sunrise.
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