You may be tired of my astronomical photographs, but I had to add this one. I took it from the parking lot of the grocery store at about 6 PM. I have known that Jupiter and Venus have been together in the western sky, and photographed them before. But I had lost track of the Moon's phase, and was delighted to see the thinnest crescent moon in the sky at dusk, in a line with the two planets. It is a stunningly beautiful sight, with the rich deep blue of the sky as the background. This is a sublime thing to see. These three travelers will be in the sky for the next few days, with the Moon gradually having a larger and larger crescent, and moving closer to Venus and Jupiter. I hope you can get out to see it. Please click on this image to see it in a larger size.
I saw that too last night and it was quite spectacular. But I can never tell one planet from another. Is there a trick?
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Ahhh... Good question! Venus is generally the brightest of all planets, but it too, changes its brightness over time. It also can be seen some times in the morning before sunrise, or the evening after sunset. Venus will disappear at the end of May. Jupiter and Saturn are impossible to tell apart, although Jupiter is brighter. Mars can be seen to the south these days, at 10 PM or so, and you can tell it by it's rich reddish color.
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