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Dazzling Duo
This week brilliant Venus and giant Jupiter are rushing toward a close encounter in the western sky.
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May 24, 2002
Stick out your index finger and hold it at arm's length. The width of your fingertip (less than 2 degrees wide) is how far apart Jupiter and Venus will be on June 3rd -- a remarkable close encounter between the two brightest planets.
There's no need to wait until June, however. Even now
Jupiter and Venus are eye-catching. They pop out of the evening twilight long before the sky grows completely dark. Brilliant Venus appears first, not far above the western horizon. Dimmer (but still bright) Jupiter emerges next, higher in the sky.
Canadian sky watcher Lauri Kangas captured this image of Venus and Jupiter emerging from the evening twilight on May 20, 2002. Venus appears twice: in the sky and reflected from the lake.
The two planets are rushing together, drawing noticeably closer each night. In fact, there is no danger of a true collision -- Jupiter is 560 million miles from Earth while Venus is only 120 million miles away. The two will converge in appearance only.
But what an appearance it will be!
Close encounters between Jupiter and Venus happen often enough, every year or so. Some, though, are better than others. For instance, on June 17, 2 B.C., the pair drew so near -- just 6 arcseconds (0.002 deg.) apart -- that they merged into a single dazzling point of light. Some scholars believe that was the Star of Bethlehem mentioned in the Bible.
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Cheers,
Dan
Dazzling Duo . . .