November 16, 2024: Mercury is at greatest elongation east this evening. Planet Uranus is at opposition near the Pleiades star cluster.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:41 a.m. CST; Sunset, 4:29 p.m. CST. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program.
Five bright planets are visible after sunset and before midnight. In order, they are Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars. The fab five are not visible simultaneously.
As Mercury, at greatest elongation, sets in the western sky, Saturn is unveiled by evening twilight in the south-southeast. Jupiter rises 78 minutes after nightfall, fifteen minutes after Mercury sets.
Venus shines brightly after sunset, to Mercury’s upper left. Use a binocular to find Mercury low in the southwest during bright evening twilight.
Venus and Jupiter are bright enough to shine through the haze at the horizon that blurs and dims celestial bodies, and they are visible simultaneously until Venus sets 145 minutes after sundown. During that time Saturn is in the southern sky – three planets at the same time.
Mars rises over three hours after Jupiter and nearly five hours after the sun sets. By this point Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars are in the sky.
Saturn sets after midnight and by the time morning twilight begins, bright Jupiter is in the western sky and Mars is high in the south.
The planet parade continues for three more nights as Mercury retreats into brighter evening twilight.
Mercury at Greatest Elongation
Mercury revolves around the sun quickly, only a fraction of an Earth year. It appears to shuttle from the western evening sky (an eastern elongation) to the eastern morning sky (a western elongation) and back again. The planet emerges from bright morning twilight and appears above the horizon. Then it disappears into bright twilight to reappear at the next elongation.
This evening, the planet appears farthest from the sun, 22.6°. The Sun-Earth-Mercury angle is at its largest. Mercury appears low in the southwest.
Mercury’s appearance is complicated by the ecliptic’s low angle with the western horizon. This has affected Venus’ evening appearance, since it first began during the summer.
From the greatest elongation and the poorly inclined ecliptic, Mercury stands only 10° above the southwest horizon at sundown. When the sky is dark enough to see the speedy planet through a binocular, it is less than 5° above the horizon.
After Mercury passes between Earth and the sun, it appears in the morning later next month, reestablishing another five-planet parade, beginning with Venus after sundown and ending with Mercury before sunrise.
Planet Uranus at Opposition
Planet Uranus is at opposition tonight, rising at sunset and setting tomorrow at sunrise. Earth is between the distant planet and the sun. Uranus is challenging to see from urban and suburban settings. It was thought to be a star before William Herschel charted its movement against the background stars in 1781.
Uranus is fairly easy to locate on moonless nights through a binocular, even from suburban areas. With the bright moon nearby tonight, wait for about a week to look for the planet.
Find the Pleiades star cluster, a stellar bundle that resembles a miniature dipper. In celestial artwork, the stars ride on the Bull’s back. Place the star cluster to the upper left edge of the binocular field. Find the stars 13 Tauri (13 Tau on the chart) and 14 Tauri (14 Tau). The planet appears as an aquamarine star near 13 Tauri and 14 Tauri.
Take a look for Mercury at greatest elongation in the bright five-planet parade and Uranus near the Pleiades star cluster.
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