Sun Days continue to lengthen after the December solstice. The shaded area of the chart above (click it to see it larger) shows the amount of daylight in January compare to the entire year, the red curve. Daylight increases by nearly 50 minutes during January; by month's end the sun is in the sky for … Continue reading January 2015 Sky Watching
Tag: Venus
Venus This Evening, December 30, 2014
Venus shines low in the southwestern sky this evening during bright twilight as seen from the Chicago area. (Click the image to see it larger.) Tress, houses or other obstructions may block its view. The planet is currently setting about an hour after sunset. During January it sets 1-2 minutes later each evening. For more … Continue reading Venus This Evening, December 30, 2014
Venus, December 25, 2014
After many cloudy days and nights, the sky broke this evening during twilight. In the image above, Venus -- now making an appearance as an Evening Star -- appears low in the southwestern sky. (Click the image to see it larger.) Tonight it sets about 65 minutes after sunset. Each evening it sets about one … Continue reading Venus, December 25, 2014
Sky Watching December 2014
Sun December, the month of the shortest daylight hours, is upon us. The day with the longest daylight is December 1 with 9 hours, 22 minutes in the Chicago area. The daylight hours decrease (9 hours, eight minutes) until the winter solstice. The sun reaches is farthest south point on December 21 at 5:03 p.m. … Continue reading Sky Watching December 2014
November 2104 Sky Watching
Welcome to November! The length of daylight continues to diminish during November. The northern mid-latitudes lose nearly an hour of daylight during the month. The blue area on the chart above indicates the length of daylight during November. (Click the image to see it larger.) With the switch back to standard time for most of … Continue reading November 2104 Sky Watching
Jupiter This Morning, October 1, 2014
That bright Morning Star in the eastern sky is Jupiter. With Venus fading into brilliant morning twilight, Jupiter reigns as the brightest starlike object in the sky. With a sky full of bright stars during the morning predawn hours, do no confuse Jupiter with Sirius, the bright star in the southeast in the morning. This … Continue reading Jupiter This Morning, October 1, 2014
October 2014 — Sky Watching
Sun Solar Eclipse The afternoon of October 23rd brings a partial solar eclipse to the Chicago area. The eclipse occurs during the late afternoon and is in progress as the sun sets at 5:59 p.m. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves in front of the sun and obscures the sun's light. The eclipse … Continue reading October 2014 — Sky Watching
Evening Star: Venus in 2014-2015
This appearance of Venus has ended. Venus disappears into bright morning sunlight during late October 2014 and moves into the western evening sky becoming a brilliant Evening Star by the end of 2014. It becomes visible in the southwestern evening sky during late November. (Click all the images to see them larger.) The planet … Continue reading Evening Star: Venus in 2014-2015
Jupiter and Venus This Morning, September 13, 2014
As Venus rapidly descends into brilliant sunlight, Jupiter shines from the eastern sky this morning as seen from the Chicago area. (Click the image to see it larger.) Venus is nearly 27 degrees to the lower left of Jupiter this morning. The pair continues to separate at about 1 degree per day. This week Venus rises about … Continue reading Jupiter and Venus This Morning, September 13, 2014
Venus, Jupiter and the Starry Morning, September 7, 2014
Brilliant Morning Star Venus and bright Jupiter shine in the eastern sky this morning as seen from the Chicago area. (Click the images to see them larger.) Venus continues its rapid descent into bright sunlight. This morning the two planets are 20 degrees apart and separating at about 1 degree each day. The star Regulus is … Continue reading Venus, Jupiter and the Starry Morning, September 7, 2014