Cat Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 I've been wondering which planets have been shining so very brightly in our western night sky. Apparently Venus and Jupiter are at their closest tonight. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/03/120313-conjunction-venus-jupiter-sky-space-science/ If you don't have cloud cover, take a look and think about all of your friends *here* who are doing the same. See... you're not as alone as you think you are! Link to comment
winknasmile Posted March 16, 2012 Share Posted March 16, 2012 A friend and I coming home from Bible Study last night said it looked like they were so close they could easily collide. Then we laughed realizing they are probably millions of miles apart. They are beautiful to see aren't they! Link to comment
Cat Posted March 16, 2012 Author Share Posted March 16, 2012 Yup, they're not even close... they just look like they are! When two worlds seem to line up in the sky, it's called a conjunction. But the apparent proximity is an optical illusion—in reality, Venus is nearly 75.9 million miles (122 million kilometers) distant from Earth, and Jupiter sits about seven times farther away at 524 million miles (844 million kilometers) from Earth. I have noticed them for some time but only remembered to look it up online tonight. Link to comment
Jori Posted March 16, 2012 Share Posted March 16, 2012 Thanks Cat! Have an excellent view of them. DD was still awake so I pulled her out of bed and took her out to see them. Text my sister to see if my niece was up (she was, too) and then called and told her to take her out. Text DD's best friend's mom and told her, she sent her older two kids out as the younger two were sleeping. I might try to go grab a few photos before the clouds roll in. Link to comment
Daylily Posted March 16, 2012 Share Posted March 16, 2012 I saw them last night. it's cloudy here tonight. They were so bright. Link to comment
themartianchick Posted March 17, 2012 Share Posted March 17, 2012 Hubby's been pulling out his telescope to look at them when the sky is clear. Link to comment
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