Poster Maker: Feng Juan
After Mars and Saturn "meet" on the morning of April 5, on the morning of April 13, the other two planets in the solar system, Jupiter and Neptune, will also stage a "coincidence" drama. Astronomical science experts said that the nearest angle distance of this "conjunctive" binary star is closer than the nearest angle distance of the "conjunctive" fire and earth.
Usually, Jupiter is the third brightest natural object at night after the moon and Venus, and in China, Jupiter is called the "year star", it is the largest planet in the solar system and the fastest spinning planet. Neptune is the farthest of the eight planets in the solar system, and the darkest-looking planet. Since Neptune is a planet that was calculated according to astronomical theory and then discovered, it is also called "discovery on the tip of the pen" in the history of astronomy.
This is the Jupiter and its two moons photographed by Zhou Zhiwei, a guangdong province astrophotography enthusiast, in Zhuhai city on July 20, 2020. (Courtesy of me)
Entering April this year, as Jupiter gradually moves away from the sun, the largest planet in the solar system "appears" in the low eastern sky before dawn, with a brightness of -2 and so on, which is more eye-catching.
Yang Jing, a member of the Chinese Astronomical Society and a director of the Tianjin Astronomical Society, said that at 4:03 a.m. on April 13, Jupiter "merged" Neptune, and from the earth, the two were very close, Jupiter was on the top, and Neptune was on its lower right. In this "conjunction", the nearest angle distance between Jupiter and Neptune is only 6.5 arc minutes, which is similar to the angular distance of Ganymede and Jupiter, and it is closer than the angular distance of 20 arc minutes when the fire and earth "meet" on April 5, which is equivalent to one-fifth of the apparent diameter of a full moon, and the two are almost "next" together.
Comics Production: Hu Yanzhu
"Two planets so close together is rare and well worth observing. About 1 hour before sunrise, Jupiter and Neptune have risen from the south-southeast horizon in the east, because Jupiter is brighter, it is easy to see, but neptune's brightness is between 7.7 and 8 magnitudes, it is usually difficult to be captured, this time with the help of Jupiter can be easily found, interested public can use small astronomical telescopes for observation. Yang Jing said.
This is Neptune photographed by the Us Voyager 2 probe. (Source nasa official website)
In April, the five planets in the solar system, Saturn, Mars, Venus, Jupiter and Neptune, appear in the low altitude of the east before dawn, and due to their different speeds, there will be planetary "coincidence" between them.
This is The 2020 photograph of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune (multiple superimposed) by Guangdong astronomy enthusiast Zhou Zhiwei. (Courtesy of me)
"There have been three planetary 'conjunctions' this month, and the other one is Venus 'conjunct' Neptune on the morning of April 28." Yang Jing said.
Producer: Hu Qinghai
Planner: Liu Xinhui
Reporter: Zhou Runjian
Editors: Lian Changyan, Tang Jianhui
It was co-produced by Xinhua News Agency and Tianjin Branch of Xinhua News Agency
Produced by Starry Sky Studios