Yang Jing, a photography enthusiast of the starry sky in Tianjin, photographed Jupiter with the moon in Dongli District, Tianjin, on September 11, 2022. (Photo courtesy of me)
A beautiful "fairy tale of the stars and moon" - Jupiter with the moon appeared in the night sky on February 15 (the sixth day of the first lunar month). As long as the weather is fine, from sunset to the first half of the night, interested members of the public will be able to see the beautiful picture of Jupiter and the crescent moon facing each other clearly with the naked eye, facing the southwestern sky.
In addition to the Sun, Venus, Jupiter, and the Moon are usually the three brightest objects that can be seen from Earth, and if you rank them in terms of brightness, the Moon comes first, Venus comes second, and Jupiter is again.
When these bright celestial bodies "gather" in the sky, they are either paired in pairs or three next to each other, and if the weather is fine, they are all worth seeing.
Xiu Lipeng, a member of the Chinese Astronomical Society and an expert in astronomical science popularization, said that on the afternoon of the 15th, Jupiter conjunct the moon, but it is daytime at this time and cannot be seen, but after dark, the scene of the two can be seen in the southwest high sky. The moon phase is between the crescent moon and the first quarter moon, and Jupiter glows golden in the lower left corner, with a magnitude of -2.3. As long as the weather is fine, the beautiful scenery of the stars and the moon is clearly visible to the naked eye, and friends who like starry sky photography can also take pictures of the two "in the same frame" to freeze this "star-moon fairy tale". The public can also use telescopes to observe them in more detail.
Cartoon: Hu Hiko Bamboo
Jupiter is the fifth closest planet to the Sun and the largest planet in the solar system.
Jupiter has been very bright in recent months, but from late January this year it has gradually dimmed. This is because on January 27, Jupiter receives the "Eastern Illumination", which means that Jupiter is located 90 degrees east of the Sun. From this day on, Jupiter begins to gradually sink in the west, decreasing in height and brightness.
Beijing starry sky photography enthusiast Wang Junfeng photographed Jupiter with the Moon in Xicheng District, Beijing, December 22, 2023. (Photo courtesy of me)
Xiu Lipeng said that the next Jupiter side moon will occur on March 14, but the angular distance between the two is even larger than this time, and interested members of the public are advised to observe it this month.
As long as the weather is fine tonight
It can be seen with the naked eye
Beautiful Jupiter with the Moon
Check the weather, everybody
Let's look forward to this pleasing celestial phenomenon
See you all together!
Source: Youth Shandong WeChat public account