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See the brightest planets in 2015’s best conjunction

by Bob Berman
April 1, 2016
in Columns, Nature
0
Almanac Weekly’s Night Sky columnist Bob Berman in his observatory in Willow (photo by Philip Kamrass | Albany Times Union)
Almanac Weekly’s Night Sky columnist Bob Berman in his observatory in Willow (photo by Philip Kamrass | Albany Times Union)

Antimatter? The strange effect that observers have on their experiments? The non-reality of time? Mind-stretching topics are fun. But sometimes the actual sky is so compelling, we’re forced simply to focus on what’s over our heads.

The action stays glued to the morning sky. We’re talking 6 to 6:45 a.m.  Normally, planet conjunctions happen for one or two days, and then the heavens move on; not now. Bright and eye-catching, these in-your-face planet configurations keep lighting up the predawn theater like a hit Broadway play.

Mercury has been putting on its best show of 2015, and this weekend marks the final curtain. For this tiny charbroiled world alone, you need a clear view nearly all the way down to the eastern horizon. If you have that, then look between 6:30 and 6:45 a.m. The lowest bright “star” is Mercury. Then you can casually mention at work that you saw the smallest planet, and watch how everyone stares and doesn’t know how to respond.

But let’s assume that you’re not perched on a ridge facing New England. Then forget Mercury and focus on the other stuff, which is getting more interesting by the day. The other three planets are all pretty high up, meaning about a third of the way up the sky: not challenging at all, unless you’re in a deep hollow or your house is surrounded by  towering trees – in which case you might have to get in the car and drive a few minutes.

For the main action right now, you should look between 6 and 6:30. The planets are not particularly low. It’s no challenge.

Two luminous stars grab your attention, the brightest in the heavens. The most brilliant is our sister world, Venus, the nearest planet. The other is giant Jupiter. This weekend they have their grand conjunction. They’ll be splendidly close together Saturday, Sunday and Monday mornings. Very cool and striking.

Just below them, look for a much-less-brilliant orange “star,” and this is Mars. It looks downright dim compared to those others. Mars is in the spotlight these days, thanks to the hit Matt Damon movie. And there it is in fact, rather than fiction.

This planet conjunction just won’t quit, which is very unusual. And thanks to the ever-earlier sunrises, this predawn event doesn’t mean 4 a.m., which would have been the case three months ago. Now, in late October, lots of folks are already up.

The ancient Greeks, the Maya, the desert-dwelling Arab observers all would have made this “Topic A” at the office water cooler. It would be shame not to simply look out the window, in the direction of the impending sunrise.

Join the family! Grab a free month of HV1 from the folks who have brought you substantive local news since 1972. We made it 50 years thanks to support from readers like you. Help us keep real journalism alive.
- Geddy Sveikauskas, Publisher

Bob Berman

Bob Berman, Ulster Publishing’s Night Sky columnist since 1974, is the world’s most widely read astronomer. Since the mid-1990s, his celebrated "Strange Universe" feature has appeared monthly in Astronomy magazine, the largest circulation periodical on the subject. Berman is also the long-time astronomy editor of the Old Farmer’s Almanac. He was Discover magazine’s monthly columnist from 1989-2006. He has authored more than a thousand published mass-market articles and been a guest on such TV shows as Today and Late Night with David Letterman. Berman is director of two Ulster County observatories and the Storm King Observatory at Cornwall. He was adjunct professor of astronomy and physics at Marymount college from 1995-2000.

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