What's in the sky tonight?
May 27, 2013
-This is the time of year when Spica, the brightest star of Virgo, shines due south just after dark. It's far to the lower right of high, bright Arcturus. Its name means "ear of wheat," and the Virgo stick figure is holding it in her hand without paying much attention. To Spica's lower right (by about a fist and a half at arm's length) is the four-star pattern of Corvus the Crow, eyeing it greedily. This year Corvus has Saturn to try to steal too. Saturn is glowing to Spica's left, noticeably brighter.
-Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter are bunched together low in the afterglow of sunset, forming a new configuration each evening. They're magnitudes –1, –4, and –2, respectively. From the 24th through 29th the three form a "trio," fitting in a circle 5° in diameter. They're bunched most tightly, fitting in a 2½° circle, on the evening of the 26th.
Astro Picture of the Day:
May 27, 2013
Source: My Camera
On May 26, 2013, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter formed a very tight triangle, just 2½° wide. The triple conjunction itself is set to last for a span of a couple weeks where all three planets fit inside a 5° circle, but yesterday was the day where all three were closest together. Venus and Mercury, the two right planets in this image, appear their closest together tomorrow May 28. This image was taken atop Leaside Bridge in Toronto, with a hydrofield in the distance. Jupiter continues to sink lower into the horizon while Venus and Mercury make their way higher into better seeing conditions. Mercury is the fastest changing of the three planets, largely because its year is only 88 days and it does not take very long to revolve around the sun. If you follow Mercury long enough, you will begin to see Mercury arc back downward toward the horizon as it heads for another revolution around the sun.