Morning Sky

The moon passes two bright planets at the end of November.  Start watching on November 21 as the moon approaches them.  Notice each morning that the moon is lower in the sky and its crescent is thinner as it approaches its New Moon phase.

• November 21: An hour before sunrise, the thinning moon, 32% illuminated, is 50° up in the southeast, is nearly 8° to the lower right of Denebola, the Tail of Leo. Mars is below the moon, over 13° up in the east-southeast. Fifteen minutes later, Mercury is nearly 7° up in the east-southeast.

• November 22: An hour before sunrise, the crescent moon, 21% illuminated, is about 40° up in the southeast, 5.5° above the star. At the same time, Mars is below the moon, about 13° up in the east-southeast. Mercury is over 5° up in the east-southeast, about 10° to the lower left of Mars.

• November 23: One hour before sunrise, the moon, 12% illuminated, is nearly 8° to the upper left of Spica. Mercury is over 6° up in the east, over 9° to the lower left of Mars.

• November 24: One hour before sunrise, the thin crescent moon, only 6% illuminated, is 3.7° to the upper left of Mars, 15° up in the east-southeast. Mars is about midway between Spica and Mercury; Mercury – Mars, 9.5°; Mars – Spica, 9.7°. Tomorrow morning, at the closest approach, Mercury and Mars have about the same separation.

Evening Sky

Venus passes Jupiter on November 24, A few evening evenings later the crescent moon passes Venus for its closest approach during this appearance of Venus.

• November 24: This evening is the Venus – Jupiter conjunction! Forty-five minutes after sunset, Venus, nearly 7° up in the southwest, is 1.4° to the lower left of Jupiter . The next Venus – Jupiter conjunction is February 11, 2021 when the planets are less than 0.5° apart, but this Epoch (close) Conjunction occurs during bright morning twilight. On April 30, 2022, another morning Epoch Conjunction brings the planets within 29’ of each other.

• November 28:  In the evening, at mid-twilight (about 45 minutes after sunset), Venus (−3.9) and the moon, 6% illuminated) have a classic appearance, with Venus 1.9° to the lower right of the moon. This is the smallest separation between the moon and Venus during this apparition of the planet. Next month, the Moon – Venus gap is 2.4° and widens each month thereafter during this appearance. Venus and the moon appear in the viewfinder of a camera with a 300 mm focal length lens. A longer exposure reveals Earthshine on the moon. At this time, Venus is about 7° up in the southwest and 4.7° to the upper left of Jupiter. The moon is 5.8° to the upper left of Jupiter.

Day-By-Day Description

This text was first published in the TCAA Observer.

• November 21: An hour before sunrise, the moon (24.3d, 32%), 50° up in the southeast, is nearly 8° to the lower right of Denebola (β Leo, m =2.1). Mars is below the moon, over 13° up in the east-southeast. Fifteen minutes later, Mercury (m = 0.1) is nearly 7° up in the east-southeast. Thirty minutes after sunset, Venus, over 8° up in the southwest, is8° to the lower right of Jupiter.
• November 22: An hour before sunrise, the crescent moon (25.3d, 21%) is about 40° up in the southeast, 5.5° above Gamma Virginis (γ Vir, m = 3.4). At the same time, Mars is below the moon, about 13° up in the east-southeast. Mercury (m = − 0.1) is over 5° up in the east-southeast, about 10° to the lower left of Mars. Thirty minutes after sunset, the Venus – Jupiter gap is 2.1°. Venus is over 8° up in the southwest.
• November 23: The moon is at perigee at 1:41 a.m. CST, 227,867 miles away. One hour before sunrise, the moon (26.3d, 12%) is nearly 8° to the upper left of Spica. Mercury (m = −0.2) is over 6° up in the east, over 9° to the lower left of Mars. Today Venus moves into Sagittarius. Thirty minutes after sunset, Venus, nearly 9° up in the southwest, is 1.5° to the lower left of Jupiter.
• November 24: One hour before sunrise, the crescent moon (27.3d, 6%) is 3.7° to the upper left of Mars, 15° up in the east-southeast. Mars is about midway between Spica and Mercury (m = −0.4); Mercury – Mars, 9.5°; Mars – Spica, 9.7°. Tomorrow morning, at the closest approach, Mercury and Mars have about the same separation, although the gap is neither a conjunction nor a quasi-conjunction. At a quasi-conjunction, the planets are within 5°. At a conjunction, they must pass each other in either Right Ascension or ecliptic longitude. Today is the Venus – Jupiter conjunction! Forty-five minutes after sunset, Venus, nearly 7° up in the southwest, is 1.4° to the lower left of Jupiter (m = −1.8). The next Venus – Jupiter conjunction is February 11, 2021 when the planets are less than 0.5° apart, but this Epoch (close) Conjunction occurs during bright morning twilight. On April 30, 2022, another morning Epoch Conjunction brings the planets within 29’ of each other. Tonight, Venus sets at its southern-most azimuth, 236°. It sets here until December 1. The planet is nearly 1.5° below the ecliptic. Jupiter sets at Astronomical Twilight (sun’s altitude, −18°), 98 minutes after sunset.
• November 25: One hour before sunrise, Mars (m = 1.7) is 15° up in the southeast, 9.5° to the upper right of bright Mercury (m = −0.3), 7° in altitude. The thin crescent moon (28.3d, 2%) is 5.5° to the lower left of Mercury. You’ll need a clear horizon to see the moon. It’s only 3° in altitude. Forty-five minutes after sunset, Venus, over 7° up in the southwest, is 2.0° to the left of Jupiter. Fifteen minutes later, Saturn is 17° up in the southwest, 19° to the upper left of Jupiter.
• November 26: One hour before sunrise, Mars, nearly 15° up in the east-southeast, is nearly 10° to the upper right of Mercury (m = −0.5). The moon is at its New phase at 9:06 a.m. CST. As evening twilight progresses, attempt to locate Venus 0.6° to the lower left of the Lagoon Nebula (M8, NGC 6530). This is certainly a stretch with the nebula low in the sky and during latter twilight. Venus is 5° up in the southwest, 1 hour after sunset. It is 2.8° to the upper left of Jupiter. This evening Venus sets at the end of twilight when the sun is 18° below the horizon. Venus sets after the end of evening twilight until May 19, 2020.
• November 27: One hour before sunrise, Mercury, over 7° up in the east-southeast, is 2.1° to the upper left of Zubenelgenubi (α Lib, m = 2.8). Use a binocular. Watch Mercury pass the star and move away from it during the next few mornings. At the same time, Mars is nearly 10° to the upper right of Mercury. Thirty minutes after sunset look for the crescent moon (1.3d, 2%), about 5° up in the southwest. It is nearly 11° to the lower right of Venus, with Jupiter between them, but Jupiter is closer to Venus. The planets are 3.7° apart.
• November 28: Mercury reaches its greatest morning elongation (20.1°) at 4:27 a.m. CST. One hour before sunrise, Mercury (m = −0.6), about 7° up in the east-southeast, is 2.1° to the upper left of Zubenelgenubi. This morning’s distance is slightly larger than yesterday’s separation, when fractions of a degree are considered. Mars is over 10° to the upper right of Mercury. In the evening, at mid-twilight (about 45 minutes after sunset), Venus (−3.9) and the moon (2.3d, 6.3%) have a classic appearance, with Venus 1.9° to the lower right of the moon. This is the smallest separation between the moon and Venus during this apparition of the planet. Next month, the Moon – Venus gap is 2.4° and widens each month thereafter during this appearance. Venus and the moon appear in the viewfinder of a camera with a 300 mm focal length lens. A longer exposure reveals Earthshine on the moon. At this time, Venus is about 7° up in the southwest and 4.7° to the upper left of Jupiter. The moon is 5.8° to the upper left of Jupiter.
• November 29: One hour before sunrise, Mercury, over 6° up in the east-southeast, is 2.6° to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi. Mars is over 10° to Mercury’s upper right. Venus is at its most southerly declination, −24.8°. One hour after sunset, this brilliant planet is over 6° up in the southwest and over 5° to the upper left of Jupiter. The moon (3.3d, 12%) is 14° up in the southwest, 1.7° to the lower left of Saturn.
• November 30: One hour before sunrise, Mars, 15° in altitude in the southeast, is 0.2° to the lower left of Lambda Virginis (λ Vir, m = 2.8). Mercury is nearly 11° to Mars’ lower left. The speedy planet is 3.6° to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi. In the evening, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, and the crescent moon span over 31°. Forty-five minutes after sunset, Venus is over 8° up in the southwest. Venus passes 0.8° to the upper right of Kaus Borealis (λ Sgr, m = 2.8), the star at the top of the lid of the Teapot of Sagittarius. Through a telescope, Venus is 11.6” in diameter and 89% illuminated. Jupiter is nearly 7° to the lower right of Venus. Jupiter continues its eastward crawl toward Saturn, over 18° to Jupiter’s upper left. The crescent moon (4.3d, 20%), 22° up in the southwest, is over 13° to the upper left of Saturn.