September 13, 2024: Mercury is exiting the nightly bright planet parade that includes Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn.
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by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:29 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:03 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Mercury is departing the eastern predawn sky, heading toward a solar conjunction at month’s end. Additionally, Saturn is nearly too low in the west-southwest during morning twilight to see at the same time, but on opposite sides of the sky from Mercury. Not only is the planet parade with the five bright planets dissolving, the predawn view of six planets, four bright ones – Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn – and two dim ones – Uranus and Neptune – is breaking up. The planets are slowly moving into the evening sky. This is the last morning to see Saturn easily when Mercury is above the horizon.
Here is the planet forecast:
Morning Sky
Nightly Planet Parade Concluding
An hour before sunrise, Saturn is about 5° above the west-southwest horizon. It rises before sunset and sets 25 minutes before sunrise. Below this altitude, Saturn is blurred and dimmed by the air near the horizon. Not bright like, Venus and Jupiter, the Ringed Wonder disappears behind the thicker air near the horizon.
Jupiter and Mars
Jupiter is that bright star high in the southeast. It plods eastward between the Bull’s horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri, 10.9° to Aldebaran’s lower left, Taurus’ brightest star.
Mars, about Aldebaran’s brightness and color, marches eastward in front of Gemini, near Castor’s foot. Tomorrow, it passes the heel, Tejat Posterior.
Mars is visible in the same binocular field with star cluster Messier 35.
Mercury is Departing
At this hour bright Mercury is above the east-northeast horizon. Wait another 15 minutes to see it over 5° above the horizon and 6.4° to the lower left of Regulus, Leo’s brightest star. The planet’s brightness rivals Sirius, over 20° up in the southeast.
The Lion’s head, known as the Sickle of Leo and resembling a backwards question mark, is to Mercury’s upper left, ending with Regulus. It is higher in the sky each morning.
Evening Sky
Venus Leads the Parade
Brilliant Venus leads the nightly planet parade. At 30 minutes after sundown, the Evening Star is over 5° above the west-southwest horizon. With this level of twilight, Venus is easily visible.
Mirroring the sun’s southerly migration at this season, Venus is farther southward each night. It approaches Spica, 5.9° to the planet’s left. Venus has a wide conjunction with the star on the 17th.
Evening Saturn
Saturn is in the east-southeastern sky at this hour, but it is washed out by twilight. As the sky darkens and Saturn is visible, Venus is lower in the sky, but remains in view.
Waxing Moon
The moon, 78% illuminated, is low in the south-southeast, as darkness falls, about two-thirds of the way from Venus to Saturn.
As the lunar orb waxes toward the Full moon phase, it occults or eclipses Saturn on the 17th for sky watchers in western North America and Hawaii.
As the calendar day ends, the moon is in the southwest; Saturn is in the southern sky; and Jupiter is in the east-northeast.
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