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The Early Evening Show Starring Jupiter and Venus

© Christina Coruth

Watch Jupiter and Venus as they appear to meet in early evening during the next two weeks. On September 6th, a very pretty crescent moon will join them low in the west/southwest sky. The best part is that you don't have to wait until dark. In fact, if you wait until dark, you will miss this spectacular show! Click the link below titled "Watch the Two Brightest Planets Kiss in Twilight" to see larger sky maps of each evening through September 7th.

If your western horizon is blocked by tall buildings or hills, you may not be able to see Jupiter and Venus since they will not be very high in the sky. Do give it a try, though. It will be worth it, even if they are only barely peeking above your horizon.

Find out when the sun sets in your area. Local newspapers usually list this information or check the links below to find sunset times in the US and Canada. Go outside a half an hour to forty-five minutes after sunset and face westerly (west/southwest). Scan the sky from the horizon upward until you see Jupiter and Venus. There won't be any other stars visible at this time. As darkness approaches, even the nearby star Spica seems faint compared to the planets.

Since sunset for my area was at 7:32 PM last night (August 26th ), I went outside at 8:00 PM. Five minutes later, I spotted Venus and then Jupiter not far above the horizon. The sky was still blue, which made for a very pretty scene. Once you know where these planets are located in your sky, it's fun to begin looking a little earlier, perhaps 20 - 25 minutes after sunset. Bring your watch. How early can you spot them?

If you watch Jupiter and Venus every evening, you will notice that they appear to get closer and closer together until the evening of September 1st, when they will appear to be only 1.2 degrees apart. You can measure this for yourself. One degree is about the width of your pinky finger held out at arms length. After September 1st, they will begin to appear to drift apart again. On September 6th and 7th, the thin crescent Moon will join Venus and Jupiter. Gradually, Jupiter will sink beneath the horizon and the Moon will continue on its journey, leaving Venus shining alone in the western sky.

August 28, 2005

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