Friday, January 17, 2025
The Planetary lineup (or planet parade) of January to February 2025, what will you see
You may have seen the rather breathless statements about the up coming planetary lineup (or planet parade) often illustrated with telescope images of the planets all rather close together and claiming 6-7 planets will be present in the evening sky.
While this is (mostly) true, you won't see anything like the illustrations. The hype distracts from what is a beautiful phenomenon.The planets, only 4 of which are bright dots, are strung out from west to east along the ecliptic like beads on a wire, Jupiter and Mars are bright and in some beautiful night sky territory.
I have some charts and spotting tips below to help you enjoy this without the hype.
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| Evening sky on Saturday, January 18 as seen from Adelaide at 21:34 ACDST (60 minutes after sunset, Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time, click to embiggen) | Evening sky on Saturday, January 25 as seen from Adelaide at 21:30 ACDST (60 minutes after sunset, Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time, click to embiggen) | Evening sky on Friday, February 28 as seen from Adelaide at 20:20 ACDST (30 minutes after sunset, Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time, click to embiggen) |
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| Orientation of the inner planets on Saturday, January 18 as seen from above the plane of the solar system | Orientation of the inner planets on Saturday, January 25 as seen from above the plane of the solar system | Orientation of the inner planets on Friday, February 28 as seen from above the plane of the solar system |
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| Orientation of the outer planets on Saturday, January 18 as seen from above the plane of the solar system | Orientation of the outer planets on Saturday, January 25 as seen from above the plane of the solar system | Orientation of the outer planets on Friday, February 28 as seen from above the plane of the solar system |
Basically, you can only see 4 of the 6-7 with your unaided eye, and rather than all being scrunched up close together, they are spread out over most of the sky from west to north-east.
From the 18th of January to mid February, face west, looking 60 minutes after sunset. Venus is obvious above the western horizon as the brightest object in the sky. Much dimmer Saturn is a spark just above obvious Venus. Turning to the north the next brightest object is golden Jupiter, the second brightest object in the sky after Venus, just below bright red star Aldebaran and the "V" of the Hyades, not far from the delightful Pleiades cluster. Then looking towards the north east, bright red Mars, just past opposition and the third brightest object in the sky, just edging out the bright star Sirius, is lined up with the pair of stars Castor and Pollux, in Gemini. Neptune is telescope visible only and will be difficult to see low on the horizon (see charts above).
The black and white chart suitable for printing shows the location of Uranus, the circle is the approximate field of view of 10x50 binoculars.
The best times to look are between 60 minutes (nautical twilight) and 90 minutes (astronomical twilight, when the sky is fully dark) after sunset, and it helps if you have a clear and level western horizon. Although Venus and Saturn set about 30 minutes or so after astronomical twilight, ~ 2 hours after sunset, trees and houses tend to get in the way.
You should be able to see this lineup from now until around 15 February, when Saturn is too low in the twilight to see (although you should be able to see it with binoculars).
After January the 18th, Saturn draws away from Saturn as the pair lower in the evening twilight. On February the first the crescent Moon is between Saturn and the obvious bright Venus low above the western horizon 60 minutes after sunset. The Moon then goes on to visit all the bright planets in turn over the next few days, this will look very nice . Venus is at its greatest brilliance on the 15th of February.
Although Jupiter and Mars move somewhat over this time they will be roughly where they are on the 18th of January, although Mars is fading rapidly.
Mercury Joins the line up around February the 15th, making 7 planets present, but is hard to see very low in the twilight. By Feb 28 Mercury is higher, but it, Saturn and Neptune are too deep in the twilight to see, and Venus is marginal. Binoculars will be required to see Mercury, and possibly Venus, which is now a thin crescent.
So ignore the hype and head out in the early evening to enjoy the sight as well the constellation of Orion and bright Sirius in Canis Major are there to look at too.
Labels: alignment, binocular, Jupiter, Mars, public outreach, Saturn, unaided eye, Venus
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
UPDATE: Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) has survived perihelion
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| Comet C/2024 G3 in the SOHO C3 imager on the 13 of January, blue filter. The tail structure is over exposed. the horizontal bar is over exposure artifact. | Comet C/2024 G3 in the SOHO C3 imager on the 13 of January, roughly the same time as the blue image, high resolution FITS image (I have adjusted brightness and contrast to bring out the tail structure) |
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| Animated GIF of Comet C/2024 G3 passing throuh the SOHO C3 imager on the 13-14 of January, blue filter. The tail structure is over exposed. the horizontal bar is over exposure artifact. | Comet C/2024 G3 in the STEREO Ahead H1 imager on the 14 of January, beacon image. The tail structure is over exposed. the vertical bar is over exposure artifact. |
Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) has survived perihelion. It is looking magnificent in the SOHO and STEREO spacecraft images. the high resolution FITS images from SOHO show finely detailed tail structure. people have been able to image it in daylight and I have seen magnitude estimates of between -5 and -2.5, if these hold up as it moves away from the sun, we may be able to see it low on the western horizon from the 16th on.
People have been reporting being able to photograph it 10 minutes after sunset in the US. See the table below for spotters charts (I am still using the old Minor Planet & Comet Ephemeris Service's prediction suggesting a peak magnitude of around -1.4 so we may see something much brighter). We may even be able to see some tail after the comets head is below the horizon.
While this will not be another comet McNaught, Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) has a very good chance of being a wonderful object as it emerges from the twilight.
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| Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 16th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 18th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 20th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) |
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| Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) will have set by the time nautical twilight occurs 60 minutes
after sunset on the 16rg. | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at nautical twilight, 60 minutes after sunset (21:35 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 18th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 60 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at nautical twilight, 60 minutes after sunset (21:35 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 16th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 60 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) |
Labels: binocular, C/2023 G3, comet, unaided eye
Tuesday, January 14, 2025
Thursday January 16 to Thursday January 23
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday January 22. In the evening Venus is close to Saturn between the 17th and 20th and closest on the 18th. Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mars are visible all together (briefly) in the evening sky (as are Uranus and Neptune, but you can't see them with the unaided eye). Jupiter is past opposition and is visible all evening long. Mars is rising in the evening sky, and was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th. Mercury is low in the morning twilight. Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) may be visible in the evening twilight, from the 16th on.
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday January 22.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 21st.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (30 minutes after sunset).
Venus is readily visible from early twilight to when the sky is fully dark. Venus is coming closer to Saturn. Between the 17th and 20th Venus is less than 3° from Saturn, and the pair are closet on the 18th.
The insets are the telescopic views of Venus and Saturn at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (45 minutes before sunrise).
Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).
Mercury is low in the morning twilight.
Venus is high in the evening twilight and is readily visible in the evening twilight. In the evening Venus is close to Saturn between the 17th and 20th and closest on the 18th.
Mars is rising in the evening sky. Mars was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th and is visible all night long.
Jupiter is rising in the the evening sky when the sky is fully dark and was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the December the 8th.
Saturn is lowering in the evening sky coming closer to Venus. The pair are closet on the 18th.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, January 13, 2025
2025: From "Mini" Moons to "Super" Moons, a year of full Moons
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| Full Moon January 14, 08:57 ACDST (Moon below horizon, moon at 21:36 shown). | Full Moon February 13, 0:23 ACDST | Full Moon March 14, 17:43 ACDST, Moon below horizon (moon at 21:00 ACDST shown) |
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| Full Moon April 13, 09:52 ACST FM9:30 (Moon below horizon, moon at 19:18 shown). Apogee at 08:00 14 April +22hs. | Full Moon May, 13 02:26 ACST | Full Moon June 11 17:25 ACST (Moon is just rising) |
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| Full Moon July 11 06:07 ACST. | Full Moon August 09 17:25 ACST (Moon below horizon, moon at 20:06 ACST shown). | Full Moon September 8 039 ACST (Moon shown at 3:31 ACST as totality is starting) |
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| Full Moon October 07 14:17 ACDST (Moon below horizon, Moon at 20:50 ACDST shown) | Full Moon November 05 23:49 ACDST ( Perigee, 6th 09:30 ACDST +9h) | Full Moon December 05 9:44 ACDST ( Perigee, 4th 21:37 ACDST +12h) |
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| First Quarter perigee moon at 22:18 ACDST on January 7. Actual First Quarter is midnight on the 7th and perigee is midnight on the 8th (a 24 hour difference). | First Quarter apogee moon at 23:11 ACST on August 1 at actual First Quarter, apogee is 6 am on the 2nd (an ~7 hour difference). The size difference will be clear in telescopes. | First Quarter Moon at 20:43 ACDST )10:13 UT) on January 7 the inset shows the Lunar X (top) and Lunar V (bottom), the dates and times that the Lunar X can be seen are shown in the table below |
Dates and time Lunar X and V are visible. Typically visible from about 4hours from the starting time, times in colour are daylight saving times.
| Date | UT | AEST | ACST | AWST |
| Feb 5 | 08:13 | 21:13 | 20:43 | 16:13 |
| Apr 5 | 12:43 | 22:43 | 22:17 | 20:43 |
| June 3 | 13:18 | 23:18 | 22:30 | 21:18 |
| Aug 1 | 10:57 | 20:57 | 20:17 | 18:57 |
| Sep 29 | 08:46 | 18:46 | 18:16 | 16:46 |
| Nov 27 | 10:43 | 21:43 | 21:15 | 18:43 |
A year of full Moons showing the variation in size as the moons move from perigee to apogee. I also show the apogee and perigee First Quarter Moons and the dates and times you can see the Lunar X and V. All the moons are shown on the day and time they are full (unless they are below the horizon, in which case the size at astronomical twilight is shown and the time of actual full moon is shown as well), and although this is not the optimal time for size comparisons, you can clearly see the size difference over the year (compare Apr 13 to Nov 5) the original scale for all is 2 degrees of field of view cropped down). Although the field rotation of the Moon makes it less clear, you can also see the effect of libration (January 3 vs May 13)
In 2025 we have two good Perigee Moons in a row (November 5, December 5). However, as you can see the differences are subtle, and it requires a keen eye and good memory to distinguish a perigee "super" Moon from more ordinary moons, the best contrast is with the apogee "mini" moon of April 13, even though this is not a good apogee Moon.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't try though. Daniel Fischer has been able to see the difference, you can read his account and viewing tips here:
http://earthsky.org/space/can-you-discern-supermoons-large-size-with-the-eye-an-observer-says-yes
Photographing them can be more rewarding. You can see images of perigee Moon and apogee Moon pairs from 21 Jan 2019 here and 10 August 2014 here.Tips for photographing them are here.
There is also a nice Total Lunar Eclipse on Monday September 8 in the early morning, so you will have to disturb your sleep to see it.
Labels: apogee, Moon, perigee, public outreach, Yearly Moons
Friday, January 10, 2025
Coming Events: A Year of Southern Astronomy for 2025
The table below shows significant astronomical events that can be seen with the unaided eye or minimal equipment in 2025 in Australia (and to some degree elsewhere in the Southern Hemisphere, ocultations and eclipses are very region specific).
This year we get a good Total Lunar eclipse visible Australia wide. We get multiple occultations of the bright star Antares. There are good oppositions of Mars and Saturn. Comet C/20024 G3 ATLAS may be visible low in the evening twilight at the end of January, if it survives its passage around the Sun.
As well we have some fantastic parings and lineups and good meteor showers (although the moon is a pest).
Close pairings of the Moon and bright planets are given special attention as not only is the Moon a ready guide to locating the planets if you are not familiar with them, these massings are rather beautiful.
Special events are bolded. T indicates a telescope only event. As well as apogee and perigee moons I have also included times when the Lunar X is visible at First Quarter.
| Date | Event |
| January | |
| 03 January 2025 | Crescent Moon near Venus in evening twilight. |
| 04 January 2025 | Earth at Perihelion, Crescent Moon close to Saturn in evening twilight. |
| 07 January 2025 | First Quarter perigee moon |
| 10 January 2025 | Moon near Jupiter in evening. |
| 14 January 2025 | Moon near Mars in evening. |
| 16 January 2025 | Mars at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth |
| 18 January 2025 | Venus and Saturn at their closest (2° apart) |
| 16-25 January 2025 | Comet C/20024 G3 ATLAS may be visible low in the evening twilight. |
| February | |
| 01 February 2025 | Saturn near crescent Moon in evening (4° apart) |
| 02 February 2025 | Venus near crescent Moon in evening (~6° apart) |
| 05 February 2025 | "Lunar X" visible in telescopes at twilght (from 0813 UT on for ~ 4 hours) T |
| 07 February 2025 | waxing Moon near Jupiter in the evening (4° apart) |
| 09 February 2025 | waxing Moon near Mars in the evening (5° apart) |
| 15 February 2025 | Venus at maximum brilliance |
| March | |
| 1 March 2025 | Saturn and Mercury near to thin crescent Moon (2° apart for Mercury) very low in evening twilight, will require binoculars. |
| 2 March 2025 | Crescent Moon near Venus in evening twilight (5°) |
| 6 March 2025 | Waxing Moon near Jupiter in evening twilight (6°) |
| 09 March 2025 | Waxing Moon near Mars in evening sky (6°), Moon close to Pollux |
| 14 March 2025 | Occultation of bright star Beta Virginis around midnight |
| 20 March 2025 | Earth at Equinox |
| 21 March 2025 | Occultation of bright star Antares just after midnight |
| April | |
| 03 April 2025 | Crescent Moon near Jupiter in Evening twilight. |
| 05 April 2025 | "Lunar X" visible from 12:43 UT T |
| 05-06 April 2025 | Mars around 5° from waxing Moon |
| 13 April 2025 | Apogee Full Moon |
| 25 April 2025 | Saturn and Venus close in the morning twilight forming a triangle with the thin crescent Moon |
| 26 April 2025 | Crescent Moon close to Mercury in the morning twilight |
| May | |
| 01-10 May 2025 | Asteroid 4 Vesta at opposition in the evening, potentially visible to the unaided eye. |
| 01 May 2025 | Saturn and Venus close in the morning twilight (3°) |
| 01 May 2025 | Jupiter near the thin crescent moon in the evening twilight |
| 04 May 2025 | First Quarter Moon close to Mars (4° apart) in the evening. |
| 6-7 May 2025 | Eta Aquariid meteor shower |
| 23 May 2025 | Crescent Moon near Saturn in the morning twilight (4°) |
| 24 May 2025 | Crescent Moon near Saturn in the morning twilight (4°) |
| 28 May 2025 | Crescent Moon near Jupiter in the evening twilight (7°) will require binoculars |
| June | |
| 01 June 2025 | Mars near to thin crescent Moon (3° apart) in evening sky. |
| 03 June 2025 | |
| 10 June 2025 | Occultation of Antares in early evening sky |
| 19 June 2025 | Waning Moon close to Saturn in morning skies |
| 21 June 2025 | Earth at solstice |
| 22 June 2023 | Crescent Moon near Venus in morning skies |
| 27 June 2025 | Thin crescent Moon close to Mercury in evening twilight |
| 30 June 2025 | Mars close to crescent Moon in evening sky. |
| July | |
| 04 July 2025 | Earth at aphelion, Venus close to Uranus (2°) |
| 08 July 2025 | Occultation of Antares in late morning sky |
| 12-14 July | Venus close to Aldebaran, making a second "eye" for Taurus the Bull. |
| 8 July 2025 | Thin crescent moon near Mercury (6° apart) low in evening twilight |
| 16-17 July 2025 | Saturn near waning Moon (6° apart) in the evening sky |
| 22 July 2025 | Venus near the crescent Moon in morning sky |
| 23 July | Jupiter near the thin crescent Moon in morning sky |
| 29-30 July 2025 | Southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower in morning |
| 1-31 July 2025 | Saturn close to Neptune (2-1°) in morning sky |
| August | |
| 01-31 August 2025 | Saturn close to Neptune (1-2°) in morning sky |
| 01 August 2025 | Lunar X visible 10:47 UT T, apogee First Quarter Moon |
| 3-4 August 2025 | Venus close to star Propus (𝝶 Geminorum, 1°) |
| 12-13 August 2025 | Jupiter and Venus close (1°) the morning sky |
| 12 August 2025 | Saturn near the waning Moon (4° apart) in the evening sky |
| 20 August 2025 | Jupiter near crescent Moon (6° apart) in morning sky |
| 21 August 2025 | Venus near thin crescent Moon (7° apart) in morning sky |
| 26 August 2025 | Mars near to thin crescent Moon (4° apart) in evening sky. |
| September | |
| 4-10 September 2025 | Jupiter close (0.5° apart) to Wassat (Delta Geminorum) closest on 7th |
| 08 September 2025 | Total eclipse of the moon (around midnight, 7th in WA) |
| 08 September 2025 | Saturn close to the Full Moon (4° apart) in evening sky (alos close dring the Lunar eclipse in the early hours of the morning. |
| 17 September 2025 | Jupiter near crescent Moon (6° apart) in morning sky |
| 21 September 2025 | Saturn at Opposition |
| 22 September 2025 | Earth at Equinox |
| 20 September 2025 | Venus very close to Regulus in the morning twilight (0.5° apart) and close to the thin resent Moon (4° apart). Will need binoculars and a level horizon |
| 24 September 2025 | Thin crescent Moon near Mars (4° apart) in evening twilight |
| 29 September 2025 | Lunar X visible 08:46 UT T |
| October | |
| 03 October 2025 | Asteroid Ceres at opposition binocular visible |
| 06 October 2025 | Moon near Saturn (9° apart) in the evening sky |
| 07 October 2025 | Jupiter in the heart of NGC 2420 T |
| 14 October 2025 | Jupiter near Last Quarter Moon (6° apart) in morning sky |
| 19 October 2025 | Mercury near Mars (2° apart) in evening twilight |
| 21-22 October 2025 | Orionid meteor shower |
| 23 October 2025 | Thin crescent Moon near Mars (4° apart) in evening twilight, forming a triangle with Mercury |
| November | |
| 2 November 2025 | Moon |
| 5 November 2025 | Perigee Full Moon ("super" Moon) |
| 11 November 2025 | Jupiter near waning Moon (6° apart) in morning sky |
| 13 November 2025 | Mercury near Mars (2° apart) low in the evening twilight |
| 21 November 2025 | Thin crescent Moon, Antares and Mars form a triangle low in the evening twilight |
| 18/19 November 2025 | Leonid Meteor Shower |
| 21 November 2025 | Opposition of Uranus (not far from Pleiades, easy binocular target, possible unaided eye) |
| 27 November 2025 | Lunar X visible 10:47 UT T |
| 29 November 2025 | Waxing Moon near near Saturn (4° apart) in the evening sky |
| December | |
| 5 December 2025 | Perigee Full Moon ("super" Moon) |
| 7 December 2025 | Jupiter near waning Moon (4° apart) in morning sky, forming a line with the bright star Pollux. |
| 14/15 December 2025 | Geminid Meteor shower in the morning, some Moon interference |
| 19 December 2023 | Mercury, the thin Crescent Moon and the bright star Antares from a triangle low in the morning twilight, might need binoculars |
| 21 December 2025 | Earth is at Solstice |
| 27 December 2025 | Neraly First Quarter Moon near near Saturn (4° apart) in the early evening sky |
Labels: Asteroid, Conjunction, eclipse, Jupiter, Mars, Moon, Opposition, Saturn, unaided eye, Venus, Yearly Sky Events
Thursday, January 09, 2025
Seeing Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) from Australia (maybe)
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| Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 16th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 18th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at civil twilight, 30 minutes after sunset (21:00 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 20th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) |
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| Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) will have set by the time nautical twilight occurs 60 minutes
after sunset on the 16rg. | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at nautical twilight, 60 minutes after sunset (21:35 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 18th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 60 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) | Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) as may be seen at nautical twilight, 60 minutes after sunset (21:35 ACDST) for Adelaide on the 16th of January 2025. (similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 60 minutes after sunset click to embiggen) |
Comet watchers are waiting anxiously to see if Comet C/2024 G3 (Atlas) will survive its perihelion passage on the Sun on the 13th of January. We have already seen comet C/2024 S1 (Atlas) vaporise, so there is some likelihood C/2024 G3 (Atlas) will not make it.
If it does, how bright it will become is still uncertain, with the Minor Planet & Comet Ephemeris Service's prediction suggesting a peak magnitude of around -1.4, abut some others suggesting it will become as bright as magnitude -4. The daylight sighting suggest the latter is more likely. A good omen if the comet survives.
We will have to wait and see what happens, for Australia, the soonest we can see the comet come out from the glare of the sun (unless it becomes exceptionally bright), is the 16th, low in the twilight. More likely we will have to wait until the 20th, when the fading comet climbs into darker skies. But no matter what, you will need a clear level western horizon, like the ocean, to see it on these dates.
Labels: binocular, C/2023 G3, comet, unaided eye
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