This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, December 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 50 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:12. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 5:22 this evening.
Let’s find out where the naked-eye planets have wandered off to this week. Three of those five planets are now visible, but Mercury sets too close to sunset to be seen. And Mars rises too close to sunrise. Saturn and Jupiter are the only evening planets visible. Saturn can be seen moving from low in the south-southwest to setting in the west-southwest at 10:44 pm. Jupiter will be moving from the high in the southeast to southwest, and will be up most of the night until 4:22 am. Venus, the brilliant morning star, will rise in the east-southeast at 4:40 am, and be a brilliant beacon in the morning, shining in the southeast by 7 am. Tonight is the first of two nights when the Geminid meteor shower will be at its peak.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Jupiter and Saturn in the evening sky is it might be seen at 7:00 this evening, December 13, 2023. Also shown are the constellations of the Zodiac and the ecliptic line which is the annual path of the Sun. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium.
Venus with the bright stars of spring evenings seen that 7 am tomorrow, December 14, 2023. At this time the Big Dipper is very high in the northeast, so spring will eventually come even though it’s not even winter yet. Created using Stellarium.
Telescopic Saturn, Jupiter and Venus (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification. At 7 pm December 13, 2023, for Saturn and Jupiter, and 7 am on the 7th, for Venus. Apparent diameters: Saturn 16.56″, its rings 38.59″; Jupiter 46.46″; and Venus 15.63″, 72.4% illuminated. Io will be transiting the face of Jupiter from 8:34 pm to 10:44 pm, and normally is not visible then. However, its shadow might be seen as a dark spot on the planet from 9:32 pm to 11:42 pm. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree).Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts) and GIMP.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on December 13, 2023. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 14th. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.
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