dipper@utastro.UUCP (Debbie Byrd) (04/12/85)
The two brightest planets are now in the east before dawn. More on Venus and Jupiter -- after this. April 12 Planets Before Dawn The two brightest planets -- Jupiter and Venus -- are now easily visible in the east before the sun comes up. You can identify the two planets any morning. But Saturday morning would be an especially good time to look, since Jupiter will be near the moon. Just set your alarm for early -- you can always go back to bed later if you want, after taking a peek outside. You don't have to go anywhere to see Jupiter, Venus and the moon -- since these three worlds in space are the brightest things we ever see in the sky -- besides the sun. All you need, to see them tomorrow morning, is a clear view of the eastern horizon. Venus will be lowest in the sky. It'll be very near the eastern horizon. Venus has just finished racing directly between the Earth and sun. Saturday morning, if you imagine a line between the Earth you're standing on and the sun just below the horizon -- you can also imagine that Venus has just come from the direction of that Earth/sun line. Jupiter never comes between the Earth and sun, because it orbits the sun beyond Earth. Instead, Jupiter is now moving around the sun somewhat ahead of the Earth. We're now catching up to Jupiter in orbit. As a result, this planet will steadily rise earlier -- until finally in August it rises in the evening, just as the sun goes down. So Saturday morning, before dawn, look outside for three worlds -- Venus, low in the east -- and Jupiter and the moon -- higher up in the east -- near each other. Script by Deborah Byrd. (c) Copyright 1984, 1985 McDonald Observatory, University of Texas at Austin