From mid-northern latitudes, their best viewing time will be after about 6 a. Observers at tropical latitudes will see the two planets higher and in a darker sky. After mid-month, Mercury will be too close to the sun for observing while it approaches superior solar conjunction on November Venus reached its widest separation from the sun towards the end of October, but its position well south of a canted-over evening ecliptic will keep the brilliant, magnitude Meanwhile, Southern Hemisphere observers, where the nearly vertical ecliptic has allowed the planet to sit relatively high in a dark sky, have experienced a terrific apparition.
Viewed through a telescope during November, our sister planet will show a gradually waning, less than half-illuminated phase and an apparent disk diameter that swells dramatically from 26 to On November 7, the young crescent moon will shine several finger widths to the lower right or 5 degrees to the celestial west of planet Venus.
From mid-Northern latitudes, the magnitude 1. A very close conjunction with Mercury on November 10 may be worthy of setting the alarm. Before the end of November, Mars will be elongated enough to briefly shine in a relatively dark sky, among the stars of Libra.
The earlier sunsets during November will extend our evening Jupiter -viewing time. The magnitude Views of Jupiter in amateur telescopes will show dark equatorial bands across its disk, which will shrink from 42 to 38 arc-seconds during the month. The Great Red Spot will appear for a few hours every 2nd or 3rd night.
During November, Saturn will be observable during early evening while it travels prograde eastward through the faint stars of western Capricornus. The magnitude 0. Viewed in a telescope, Saturn will display a mean apparent disk diameter of Several moons can be readily seen arrayed around the planet, especially the brightest one, Titan. Uranus will reach opposition on November 5, making it an all-night target during November.
On opposition night it will be closest to Earth for this year - a distance of 1. It will also appear slightly larger - showing a 3.
On November 17, the very bright, nearly-full moon will shine two thumb widths to the lower left or 2. The distant, blue planet Neptune will be observable until after midnight during November. The magnitude 7. If the sky is very dark, Neptune can be seen in good binoculars. Your best views will come in mid-evening, when the blue planet is highest in the south. Asterism: A noteworthy or striking pattern of stars within a larger constellation.
Degrees measuring the sky : The sky is degrees all the way around, which means roughly degrees from horizon to horizon. It's easy to measure distances between objects: Your fist on an outstretched arm covers about 10 degrees of sky, while a finger covers about one degree. Visual Magnitude: This is the astronomer's scale for measuring the brightness of objects in the sky.
The dimmest object visible in the night sky under perfectly dark conditions is about magnitude 6. Brighter stars are magnitude 2 or 1. The brightest objects get negative numbers. Venus can be as bright as magnitude minus 4. The full moon is minus Adjust to the dark: If you wish to observe faint objects, such as meteors or dim stars, give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust to the darkness.
At opposition, we sit directly between them and the Sun. This is an awesome time for planet-watching because a planet at opposition is visible all night long and highest in the sky transiting around midnight! We get hours to see the planet high above the horizon during the hours of darkness. It shows which of the five visible planets can be seen tonight for each month in It includes opposition dates for Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, and greatest elongation dates for Mercury and Venus.
For each of the five visible planets, we show you whether it is visible in the evening E or morning M. During opposition months, the planet will be visible all night. For Mercury, only Greatest Elongation dates are shown but the planet will be visible for weeks on either side of that date. For the smallest planet in the solar system , you may be wondering can we see Mercury from Earth, and the answer is a resounding yes! You can see Mercury without a telescope if you know when and where to look.
However, of the five brightest planets, Mercury is definitely the trickiest one to glimpse. For the best chance of success, find an elevated position, e. Mercury skirts so close to the ground — even at its best — that trees and buildings can prevent you from seeing it.
The challenge to seeing Mercury comes from the short distance between it and the Sun, and the rapid orbit the planet has. Mercury orbits the Sun in only 88 days , so it completes well over four laps of the sun for every one of ours. Mercury is so close to the sun that we can never see it in true darkness. Ten degrees is about the width of your fist at the end of your outstretched arm, i.
Our time to see it is also limited. Even at its best seeing , Mercury is usually only visible for up to an hour before sunrise in the morning or after sunset in the evening. Mercury has a speedy orbit, so it does not hang around long and we have to grab opportunities to see it.
Thankfully, Mercury has six greatest elongation events this year, three each in the evening and morning. Remember, because Mercury is a speedy planet, seeing stays favorable only for a few days on either side of these dates.
For more details click this link for our dedicated guide to seeing Mercury with a telescope. Always be careful when searching for and viewing Mercury, especially if using binoculars or a telescope. The Sun is never far away and will severely damage your eyes if you look at it — even a glimpse of it with binoculars or a telescope can blind you.
January : Mercury is in Capricornus at the start of February : There is limited visibility at the beginning of the month as dusk begins. At the end of February, Mercury rises before the Sun with okay visibility. May : One of the best viewing opportunities of comes around the greatest elongation of the 17th. Observation is particularly good from the first day of May until around the 21st. Each month we issue detailed guides for observing Mercury, including exactly where to look each day.
July : Greatest elongation occurs on the fourth of the month, but seeing is far from impressive. Mercury remains viewable until the last week of the month. September : Although greatest elongation is reached on the 13th of the month, viewing is very poor because the angle of the ecliptic the line the planets travel across the sky is very shallow.
Even on the 13th itself, Mercury barely grazes the western horizon 40 minutes after sunset. October : The last greatest elongation of the year for Mercury is a good one. Best viewing lasts from Oct 21st to Nov 06th. November : Good morning viewing stays with us for the first ten days of the month and then Mercury moves too close to the Sun for us to observe it.
December : As the year ends, we can grab our last evening glimpses of Mercury. The next planet out from Mercury is Venus. After the Moon , Venus is the brightest object in our night sky. Unlike Mercury, Venus is far enough from the sun that we can see it in the darkness of nighttime and not just in the glow of dawn or dusk.
Venus also has crescent phases, like our own Moon , which can be seen through a small telescope link opens our favorites in a new tab. This is the only feature to observe on Venus because it has no moons of its own, nor any visible surface features. The planet is unmistakably bright, shining much brighter than any other object in the night sky which makes it easy to view, even with a pair of binoculars.
At its furthest from the Sun, Venus can spend a few nights where it is visible all night long. For more details click this link for our dedicated guide to seeing Venus with a telescope. Orbital Period : days Synodic Period : days approx. Venus only has one greatest elongation in , on October 29th, which is best viewed after sunset. January : Venus begins the year in the morning skies against the backdrop of Sagittarius, but is only observable for the first week of the year.
After that, it moves too close to the Sun and we lose visibility of it until it re-emerges in May evenings. March : Venus is not visible this month because it is too close to the Sun. The planet reaches superior conjunction, which is when it is directly behind the Sun from our perspective, on the 26th of the month.
May : Finally, after a third of the year hiding near the Sun, Venus can be glimpsed above the northwest horizon in the last two weeks of May. Here, we present a schedule below which provides some of the best planet viewing times as well directing you as to where to look to see them. Remember on Nov. On this date, the clock hour from 1 a.
The mnemonic is: "Spring Ahead, Fall Back. Mercury — enjoys its very best morning apparition of this month. Each morning thereafter it rises a couple of minutes earlier, climbs noticeably higher and also gets noticeably brighter. On Nov. For several mornings both before and after this date, Mercury will appear to rise prior to the onset of twilight, in a dark sky, about 1 hour 45 minutes before sunup. At a brilliant magnitude of At around 5 a.
Neptune has 13 moons and takes years to take 1 trip around the Sun! Neptune spends all of in the constellation of Aquarius the Water Carrier. Learn more about Neptune! So, Venus is practicaly visible entire year!? Ok, how is that possible? You can not observe it during the night, since we are facing outer space on the night side and Venus is simply not there. Same goes for Mercury…. Straka, How does earth being flat change any of that? Same in the mornings depending on the time of year.
Wow, the earth is a sphere. Just like the rest of the planets and moons and every other large celestial body. Muchas gracias. Hi Michael, Our apologies in advance that this is a long reply but hopefully, it answers your question. When they arrive at superior conjunction, that is the day they transition from a morning star to an evening star. It then transitions back to being a morning star. Thank u for the artical here is juat 1 lonely pic i have taken out of thousands..
Hi Kari, the same thing happened to me. I so appreciate space and our place in it. Very good pictures and explained very well, but what do you mean by opposition or opposite the sun.
Hi Liz, all the planets in our solar system orbit the Sun. At certain points during these orbits, the Earth finds itself directly between the Sun and another planet. Thank you for a very nice article! Terrific, Bob.
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