Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog

Ephemeris for Wednesday, May 21st.  Today the sun will be up for 15 hours and 1 minute, setting at 9:10.   The moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 2:42 tomorrow morning.  Tomorrow the sun will rise at 6:07.

It’s Wednesday and once again time to locate the bright planets for this week.   Mercury is showing up in the west shortly after sunset,  It will be at its farthest from the Sun on the 25th.  It will set at 11:10.  Brilliant Jupiter will be in the western sky in Gemini as darkness falls tonight.  It will set at 12:44 a.m.  Reddish Mars is in Virgo in the southeast as darkness falls.  It will pass due south at 10:18 p.m.  It’s 68 million miles (109 million km) away now, and moving away, and will set at 4:09 a.m.  Saturn will be low in the southeast as darkness falls.  It’s in the faint constellation of Libra the scales this year.  It will pass due south at 12:54 a.m.  Brilliant Venus will rise in the east at 4:37 a.m. in morning twilight.

Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Addendum

All the evening planets from Mercury to Saturn at 10:30 p.m. May 21, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Telescopic images of the moon and planets are not to scale.

Mercury in a telescope 10:30 p.m. May 21, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Jupiter and moons in a telescope 10:30 p.m. May 21, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Mars in a telescope 10:30 p.m. May 21, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Saturn and its moon Titan in a telescope 10:30 p.m. May 21, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Venus and the Moon looking east at 5:30 a.m. May 22, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

The Moon in a telescope at 5:30 a.m. May 22, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Venus in a telescope at 5:30 a.m. May 22, 2014. Created using Stellarium.