September 14, 2024: As Mercury departs the morning sky, the nightly parade of five bright planets ends. The moon begins to approach the Saturn before their occultation on the 17th.
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by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:30 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:01 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Beginning tomorrow, the sun sets before 7 p.m. in the eastern regions of time zones at Chicago’s latitude.
Nightly Planet Parade Finishes
The nightly parade of the five bright planets ends today as bright Mercury departs the morning sky. Mercury aficionados can follow it for several more mornings with a binocular or telescope as it races into bright morning twilight.
The five-planet parade reconstitutes during mid-November, although a binocular is needed to see Mercury on the best night.
Continue to look for Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars during the night. Uranus and Neptune are visible through a binocular.
Here is the planet forecast:
Morning Sky
Goodbye, Mercury!
At 45 minutes before daybreak, bright Mercury is visible less than 5° above the eastern horizon, 8.1° to Regulus’ lower left, Leo’s brightest star.
Regulus is at the bottom of the Sickle of Leo, a backwards question mark, outlining the Lion’s head.
Mercury races into brighter morning twilight. It reaches a solar conjunction at month’s end, followed by a reappearance in the evening sky. Goodbye, Mercury!
Jupiter, Mars
At this hour, Jupiter and Mars are visible high in the southeast. Jupiter is the brightest star in the sky this morning. It plods eastward in front of Taurus, between the horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri, 11.0° to Aldebaran’s lower left, the Bull’s brightest star.
Mars, mirroring the same brightness and color as Aldebaran, marches eastward near Tejat Posterior, Castor’s heel. The Red Planet passes 1.0° to the upper left of the star.
Mars is in the same binocular field with a star cluster, cataloged as Messier 35, a star cluster with a few hundred member stars.
Saturn is too low in the west-southwest for easy observation at this hour. It sets 30 minutes before sunrise.
Evening Sky
Moon Targets Saturn
The bright gibbous moon, 87% illuminated, is about 20° above the south-southeast horizon. It is approaching Saturn, over 35° to the lower left. On the morning of the 17th, the moon occults or eclipses the planet from western North America and Hawaii. The duration of the occultation occurs over the Pacific Ocean. From eastern Americas the moon approaches the planet as they duo sets.
Earlier this evening, Venus is low in the west-southwest at 30 minutes after sunset. The Evening Star is about 5° above the horizon. It shines through the colorful light of brighter evening twilight.
Evening Star
Venus is 4.8° to Spica’s upper right, Virgo’s brightest star. Use a binocular to see them in the same field of view. Venus passes the star in a wide conjunction in three evenings.
By 45 minutes after nightfall, look for Venus and Saturn in nearly opposite directions.
The moon sets after midnight and a few hours before sunrise.
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