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04/13/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, April 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 13 hours and 23 minutes, setting at 8:25, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:00. The Moon, 3 days before full, will set at 6:22 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There is one bright planet in the evening sky, but too close to the Sun to be seen. Mercury passed behind the Sun eleven days ago and will be visible later this month, so the planet action still shifts to the morning sky. The other 4 naked-eye planets are there, though Jupiter may be too low in the sky to be seen. By 6:15, the planets will be spread out low in the east-southeast to southeast, with brilliant Venus near the center of the four. Dim Mars will be to the right and a bit above Venus. Brighter Saturn will be right and above Mars. Jupiter will be near the horizon and left of Venus. Jupiter can be still spotted by 6:30 along with Venus and followed even closer to sunrise.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Tonight’s Moon annotated, for 10 pm, April 13, 2022, showing major formations visible in binoculars or a small telescope. Created using Stellarium.
Translations
Mare Crisium – Sea of Crises
Mare Fecunditatis – Sea of Fertility
Mare Humorum – Sea of Moisture
Mare Imbrium – Sea of Showers
Mare Nectaris – Sea of Nectar
Mare Nubium – Sea of Clouds
Mare Serenitatis – Sea of Serenity
Mare Tranquillitatis – Sea of Tranquility
The lineup of morning planets at 6:15 am, about 45 minutes before sunrise tomorrow morning, April 14, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Views of Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 6:15 am, April 14, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 19.12″, 61.2% illuminated; Saturn 16.07″, its rings 37.44″; Jupiter 33.90″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 5.43″ and is 90.7% illuminated. The moons of Jupiter and Saturn may not be visible in twilight. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on April 13, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 14th. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
04/06/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, April 6th. Today the Sun will be up for 13 hours and 2 minutes, setting at 8:16, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:12. The Moon, 3 days before first quarter, will set at 2:16 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There is one bright planet in the evening sky, but too close to the Sun to be seen. Mercury passed behind the Sun last Saturday and will be visible later this month, so the planet action still shifts to the morning sky. The other 4 naked-eye planets are there, though Jupiter is too close to the Sun to be seen. Late winter and early spring mornings aren’t the best for spotting planets close to the Sun, since they tend to lie low in the southeastern sky. Venus, Mars, and Saturn will rise within 16 minutes of each other by 5:35. By 6:30, they will be low in the east-southeast with dim Saturn to the right and a bit above Venus, and much dimmer Mars to the left and below Saturn.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Annotated crescent Moon animation of the Moon tonight, April 6, 2022. The annotations are the official names in Latin of the seas of Tranquility, Crises, Nectar, and Fertility. Created using Stellarium.
Venus, Mars and Saturn as they might be seen around 6:30 tomorrow morning, April 7, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Views of Venus and Saturn (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 6:30 am, April 7, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 20.38″, 58.2% illuminated; Saturn 15.92″, its rings 37.08″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 5.30″ and is 91.2% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on April 6, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 7th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now, with the Moon still hanging out in the evening sky. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
04/04/2022 – Ephemeris – Two apparent planetary encounters tonight and tomorrow morning
This is Ephemeris for Monday, April 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 12 hours and 56 minutes, setting at 8:14, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:16. The Moon, 3 days past new, will set at 12:10 tomorrow morning. | We have action at both end of the night tonight. This evening the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters star cluster, will be seen just above and right of the three-day old crescent Moon. The cluster will be at the one o’clock position from the Moon at 9 pm. At the other side of night, at 6:30 tomorrow morning, Venus will be shining brilliantly in the east-southeast and the planets Mars and Saturn will be very close together. This type of appearance is called a conjunction. Mars will appear about three-quarters of a moon diameter below and left of the slightly brighter Saturn. Mars is getting slowly brighter as the Earth creeps up on it, to overtake it this December. It’s currently 165 million miles (266 million kilometers) away.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The Moon and the Pleiades and Hyades tonight at 9 pm EDT, April 4, 2022. The Moon appears near the stepsister star clusters tonight. In Greek mythology, these two star clusters were indeed stepsisters, fathered by the god Atlas with different mothers. Created using Stellarium with additional captions in LibreOffice.
A Saturn-Mars conjunction with brilliant Venus nearby as it might look like tomorrow morning, April 5, 2022. Created using Stellarium with labels added in LibreOffice.
03/30/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, March 30th. Today the Sun will be up for 12 hours and 40 minutes, setting at 8:07, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:25. The Moon, 2 days before new, will rise at 7:31 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There are no bright planets in the evening sky, so the planet action shifts to the morning sky. All five naked-eye planets are there, though Jupiter and Mercury are too close to the Sun to be seen. Late winter and early spring mornings aren’t the best for spotting planets close to the Sun, since they tend to lie low in the southeastern sky. Venus, Mars, and Saturn will rise within 6 minutes of each other by 5:46. By 6:30, they will be low in the east-southeast with much dimmer Mars to the left of Venus, with Saturn between and a bit below them. Monday, April 4th Mars will appear closest to Saturn, scooting below the ringed planet that evening, so they will appear close together both Monday and Tuesday mornings.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
What the morning planets might appear as at 6:30 tomorrow morning, March 31, 2022. They may be brighter than they actually appear. Created using Stellarium.
Telescopic views of the Venus and Saturn (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 6:30 am, March 31, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 23.52″, 55.0% illuminated; Saturn 15.78″, its rings 36.76″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 5.18″ and is 91.7% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on March 30, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 31st. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now, with the Moon still hanging out in the evening sky. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
03/25/2022 – Ephemeris – Over the weekend there will be the continued gathering of morning planets
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, March 25th. Today the Sun will be up for 12 hours and 25 minutes, setting at 8:01, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:34. The Moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 4:56 tomorrow morning.
Over the weekend there will be the continued gathering of morning planets, Venus, Mars and Saturn, culminating on Monday morning when the waning crescent Moon will join the group by slipping beneath them. During the three day period between Saturday and Monday mornings at a specific time, like 6:45 am, about 45 minutes before sunrise, these planets will be in the east southeast and quite low in the sky. A low horizon in that direction will help, especially when the Moon joins the group, because it will be lower than the three planets. Over the weekend Venus and Mars will keep their separation with Mars to the right and a bit below Venus. Saturn will scoot below Venus, moving to the right. The Moon will move below the group Monday morning.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The grouping of Venus, Mars, Saturn and the Moon which will develop over the mornings of Saturday, March 26th through Monday, March 28, 2022. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
03/23/2022 – Ephemeris – The search for the naked-eye planets moves to the morning sky
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, March 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 12 hours and 18 minutes, setting at 7:59, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:38. The Moon, 2 days before last quarter, will rise at 2:50 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There are no bright planets in the evening sky. The planet action shifts to the morning sky. All five naked-eye planets are there, though Jupiter and Mercury are too close to the Sun to be seen. Late winter and early spring mornings aren’t the best for spotting planets close to the Sun, since they tend to lie low in the southeastern sky. Venus will rise at 5:46 tomorrow morning, Mars will rise at 5:51, and Saturn will rise at 6:10. By 7 am, they will be low in the southeast with much dimmer Mars at the 4 o’clock position below Venus, with Saturn lower, and at between the 7 and 8 o’clock position. Jupiter is just rising at that time.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Morning planets and Moon at 7 am tomorrow morning, March 24, 2022. At that time Mars and Saturn may require binoculars to spot, however a quarter or a half an hour earlier they should be visible to the naked-eye.
Waning gibbous Moon with animated labels. The Moon as it might appear in binoculars or a small telescope, with prominent lunar seas and craters labeled. I’ve retained the sea’s Latin names. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium, GIMP and LibreOffice.
Telescopic views of the Venus and Saturn (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 7 am, March 24, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 23.52″, 51.6% illuminated; Saturn 15.66″, its rings 36.47″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 5.06″ and is 92.3% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on March 23, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 24th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets and the Moon are in the morning sky now. The labels for Saturn and Venus overlap. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
03/16/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, March 16th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 57 minutes, setting at 7:50, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:51. The Moon, 2 days before full, will set at 7:59 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There are no bright planets in the evening sky. Jupiter, the last to leave, will stay too close to the direction of the Sun to be visible in the morning sky for at least a month. So that’s where the action shifts to. Jupiter joins Mercury, Saturn, Venus and Mars. Late winter and early spring mornings aren’t the best for spotting planets close to the Sun, since they tend to lie low in the southeastern sky. Venus will rise at 5:51 tomorrow morning and Mars will rise at 6:04. Saturn will rise at 6:40. By 7:15, they will be low in the southeast with much dimmer Mars at the 5 o’clock position below Venus, with Saturn much lower at the 8 o’clock position.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT – 4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The Moon 2 days before full as it might appear in binoculars or small telescope, tonight, at 9 pm, March 16, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Morning planets Venus, Saturn and Mars at 7:15 am, or about 36 minutes before sunrise tomorrow, March 17, 2022. Binoculars may help in spotting Mars and Saturn. Over the week, these planets will continue to move away from the rising Sun. Well, all except Venus which will reach its greatest elongation, meaning separation from the Sun on Sunday, before beginning to slip back toward the Sun. Created using Stellarium.
Telescopic views of the Venus and Saturn (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 7 15 am, March 17, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 25.49″, 48.0% illuminated; Saturn 15.55″, its rings 36.22″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 4.94″ and is 92.8% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on March 16, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 17th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now, with the Moon still hanging out in the evening sky. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
03/09/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, March 9th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 35 minutes, setting at 6:41, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:04. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 2:28 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. There are no bright planets in the evening sky. Jupiter, the last to leave, will stay too close to the direction of the Sun to be visible in the morning sky for at least a month. So that’s where the action shifts. Jupiter joins Mercury, Saturn, Venus and Mars. Late winter and early spring mornings aren’t the best for spotting planets close to the Sun, since they tend to lie low in the southeastern sky. Saturn and Mercury are also too close to the direction of the Sun to be spotted now. Venus will rise at 4:55 tomorrow morning and Mars will rise at 5:16. By 6:15, they will be low in the southeast, with much dimmer Mars at the 5 o’clock position below Venus.
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
The waxing crescent Moon at 8 pm or an hour or so after sunset tonight, March 9, 2022. It is shown as it might be seen in binoculars or a small telescope. Created using Stellarium.
Morning planets Venus and Mars at 6:15 am, or about 45 minutes before sunrise tomorrow, March 10, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Venus through a telescope as it would appear before sunrise tomorrow morning, March 10, 2022. It’s shown larger than usual, since it’s the only planet that looks like anything in a small telescope now. Its apparent diameter is 27.78″, and it is 44.0% illuminated by the Sun. Mars has an apparent diameter of 4.83″, and is slightly gibbous at 93.3% illuminated. (” means seconds of arc. 1″ is 1/3600th of a degree). Created using Stellarium, which is also the source for the apparent diameters and the illuminated fraction of Venus and Mars.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on March 9, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 10th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
03/02/2023 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Ash Wednesday, March 2nd. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 13 minutes, setting at 6:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:16. The Moon is new today, and won’t be visible.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. The last evening planet, Jupiter, will pass behind the Sun this Saturday and enter the morning sky. So the action shifts to the morning sky, where Saturn, Mercury, Venus and Mars reside. Saturn and Mercury are too close to the direction of the Sun to be spotted now. Mercury is heading back toward the Sun. Saturn should be able to be spotted in morning twilight in a few weeks as it joins Venus, our brilliant morning star, and Mars in the southeast about half an hour to 45 minutes before sunrise. Tomorrow morning Mars will be below, and right of bright Venus, which will rise at 5 am, with Mars following at 5:26.
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
Venus and Mars in the morning as they might appear at 6:30 am, about 45 minutes before sunrise, Thursday, March 3, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Venus through a telescope as it would appear before sunrise tomorrow morning, March 3, 2022. It’s shown larger than usual, since it’s the only planet that looks like anything in a small telescope now. Its apparent diameter is 30.49″, and it is 39.7% illuminated by the Sun. Mars has an apparent diameter of 4.73″.
(” means seconds of arc. 1″ is 1/3600th of a degree). Created using Stellarium, which is also the source for the apparent diameters and the illuminated fraction of Venus.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on March 2, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 3rd. There’s a label pile up in the sunrise panel where the Labels for Saturn and Mercury overlay each other. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
02/23/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, February 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 52 minutes, setting at 6:22, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:28. The Moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 2:43 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. The last evening planet, Jupiter, is too close to the setting Sun to be spotted now after sunset. The action now shifts to the morning sky, where Venus and Mars reside. Saturn entered the morning sky sixteen days ago, and it will be about another month or so before it’s far enough from the direction of the Sun to be spotted. Venus, our brilliant morning star, Mars and maybe even Mercury can be spotted low in the southeast by 6:45 am, about half an hour before sunrise. Mars will be below, and right of Venus, while Mercury will be near the horizon left of Venus. Mercury is brighter than Mars, but lower in the more intense twilight. Venus will rise at 5:06, with Mars following at 5:38, and Mercury rising last at 6:32.
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
Morning planets and the waning crescent Moon at 6:45 am, or about 40 minutes before sunrise tomorrow morning, February 24, 2022. Mercury may not actually be visible. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium.
Waning Crescent Moon as it might be shown in binoculars or small telescope tomorrow morning, February 24, 2022. Created using Stellarium.
Venus through a telescope as it would appear before sunrise tomorrow morning, February 24, 2022. It’s shown larger than usual, since it’s the only planet that looks like anything in a small telescope now. Its apparent diameter is 33.72″, and it is 34.9% illuminated by the Sun.
(” means seconds of arc. 1″ is 1/3600th of a degree) Mars has an apparent diameter of 4.63″, while Mercury has one of 6.18″. Created using Stellarium, which is also the source for the apparent diameters and the illuminated fraction of Venus.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 23, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 24th. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 