Here’s the press release from PARI:
Rosman, NC (July 23, 2014) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute note that in the predawn hours of August 19 the brightest planet of them all Venus will pass by the second brightest planet Jupiter in the morning twilight.
Venus has been our “Morning Star” since it passed behind the Sun on January 11 to emerge in our morning twilight shortly thereafter. Jupiter, for most of this year was our “Evening Star” but on July 24 it, too, passed behind the Sun and is now emerging in the morning twilight to join Venus. Venus, being closer to the Sun than Jupiter, is moving more quickly and right now it is getting lower at dawn as Jupiter is climbing higher. On the morning of August 19 they pass in the night – well, at least in the morning twilight.
Technically, this event occurs at midnight EDT the night of August 18-19. Of course, these planets will not have risen here in the Carolinas by then so we will miss the actual moment of the closest approach, 12 arc minutes, about a third the size of the Moon. However, these two brilliant planets will still be close together as they rise in the morning twilight, Jupiter at 5:22 a.m. EDT and Venus five minutes later.
But wait! The fun continues. By the next week Jupiter will stand well above Venus and on the morning of August 23 the waning crescent Moon will join this pair for a beautiful sight low in the eastern predawn sky. Enjoy the show!
Looking even farther ahead, Jupiter will continue to rise earlier each morning for the rest of the year and will become our “Morning Star.” Venus, on the other hand, will pass behind the Sun on October 25 and move into our evening skies to become our “Evening Star.” So, by the end of the year they will have switched places from where they were in late January. Go out and watch this dance of the planets in our beautiful Carolina skies!
About PARI
PARI is a public not-for-profit public foundation established in 1998. Located in the Pisgah National Forest southwest of Asheville, NC, PARI offers educational programs at all levels, from K-12 through post-graduate research. For more information about PARI and its programs, visit HYPERLINK “javascript:void(‘http://www.pari.edu/’);” www.pari.edu.
Follow PARI on Twitter at HYPERLINK “javascript:void(‘http://twitter.com/Astronomy_PARI’);” http://twitter.com/Astronomy_PARI. “Like” PARI on Facebook at HYPERLINK “javascript:void(‘http://www.facebook.com/Pisgah.Astronomical.Research.Institute’);” www.facebook.com/
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