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[EN VIDÉO] Discover Venus, the Shepherd’s Star. This planet, which bears the name of the goddess of beauty, still has…
This Thursday, November 9, 2023, it will appear in the skies of Europe – as well as parts of Russia, Greenland, Africa and Asia – a not so common phenomenon. The moon will then pass in front of Venus. Astronomers speak of lunar occultation. The last time this happened over France was in June 2020. The next time will be in September 2025.
The moon will hide Venus from us
This night, just six days after the new moon and thus at just over 15% of its maximum luminosity, the moon slowly approaches the planet Venus as soon as the planet rises, i.e. about two hours before sunrise. To view the spectacle, plan on a clear horizon on the south-southwest side of the constellation Virgo. Everything will be visible to the naked eye. But a pair of binoculars on a tripod or a small telescope or telescope-like instrument makes things a little more spectacular.
Finally, tipping is given in broad daylight between around 10:50 a.m. and until 11:15 a.m., depending on where you are in France, from Lille to Bayonne or Perpignan. And it will take about 90 seconds for the crescent of Venus – a large crescent moon that makes up 58 percent of the planet’s entire disk – to completely disappear behind the crescent moon. About an hour later the planet will reappear on the other side.
How does a solar eclipse work? Franck Menant explains everything to you in our podcast “Futura dans les Étoiles”.
Venus’ lunar occultation will not be visible everywhere
Remember that even if the Moon and Venus appear very close during this occultation, the first will be about 396,000 kilometers from Earth, while the second will be about 122 million kilometers away! And it is precisely this difference in the distance between the two stars that means that the phenomenon will not be visible from everywhere on our planet. Because depending on where you are, the position of the moon in the sky will be very different. That of Venus less so.
On June 19th, Venus will disappear for one hour
This Friday, June 19th, the two closest stars to Earth, the Moon and Venus, will meet in the clarity of the sky in broad daylight. From our planet’s perspective, the larger one will devour the smaller one and digest it again an hour later. A beautiful phenomenon that can be observed with the naked eye or with an instrument, carefully avoiding looking at the sun.
Article by Xavier DemeersmanXavier Demeersman published on June 18, 2020
You may not have noticed, but the star we called the “Shepherd’s Star” disappeared from the sky recently this evening. It is normal that Earth, Venus and Sun were aligned a few days ago. Our neighbor was therefore not visible in the evening or morning as she was hidden under the blinding sun star.
However, Venus will actually disappear for an hour tomorrow morning. Disappearance is a big word because it is a concealment. Seen from Earth’s northern hemisphere, the moon will pass in front of it. In Europe and mainland France, this rather rare spectacle will only be seen in broad daylight, early in the morning. Of course, times vary depending on latitude. In Paris, for example, the meeting begins at 7:39 a.m. UT, or 9:39 a.m. local time, when the dark part of Venus is eaten away by the reliefs of the moon’s glowing edge. You’ll then have to wait until 8:36 a.m. UT or 10:36 a.m. Paris time to see the solar system’s second planet again.
Observe the occultation of Venus
Many people don’t know it, but the very bright Venus (magnitude -4) can be observed in broad daylight. However, it is important to avoid the sun and not look at it with binoculars or a telescope when searching for the planet. The damage to your eyes would be irreversible.
This Friday, June 19th, our star will be more than 20° east of the Moon-Venus duo. If it were not for the Earth’s atmosphere, we could see that the protagonists of this celestial sphere are all in Taurus. The Sun over one horn of the constellation (it will enter Gemini on the 21st) and the Moon enveloping Venus are seen in silhouette between the head of the beast, which is made up of the stars of HyadesHyades and the PleiadesPléiades.
Two days before the new moon, our only natural satellite will show a very thin crescent: only 4% of its surface (as seen from Earth) will be illuminated. The beautiful Venus, whose disk is 8% bathed in light, also has two very fine horns.
The moon’s occultation of Venus becomes even more beautiful when viewed through binoculars, a telescope, or a telescope. You can then admire the penumbra that covers the rest of the moon’s disk, a phenomenon affectionately known as “ash light.”
After this event, it will again be possible to view Venus in the absence of the Sun, but you will have to get up in front of the Sun Star. The planet returns to the morning sky for several weeks.
An annular solar eclipse on June 21st
Another meeting awaits the moon soon: the sun. A beautiful annular solar eclipse will occur on June 21st. The Ring of Fire will be visible along an arc from the Democratic Republic of Congo to the Pacific Ocean and through Tibet. The best place to admire the spectacle (almost 99% of the sun is hidden) is near the border of India, Tibet and Nepal.
Article by Jean-Baptiste Feldmann, published November 27, 2008
It is a rare spectacle that the sky will offer us on Monday, December 1st: the moon will pass in front of the planet Venus for almost an hour and a half. A phenomenon that everyone can admire with the naked eye.
As the Moon moves daily, it sweeps across a significant swath of the sky, periodically obscuring some stars and, much more rarely, a planet.
This will be the case on Monday, December 1st: around 5 p.m. local time, as the Sun passes over the western horizon, we can see how the bright point of Venus, attached to the Moon, “extinguishes” in a few seconds . then resurface from there. On the other hand, about 1 hour 30 minutes later.
The spectacle will be enhanced by the presence of the ash-colored light that will illuminate the rest of the lunar disk, with the added benefit of a planetary approach as Jupiter will not be far away!
Photographers will have fun: their camera is mounted on a tripod to avoid the risk of movement, and they can try out different exposure times and focal lengths to compose beautiful twilight scenes. Your images will be welcome in the astronomy forum, where enthusiasts will let you experience this rare moment in the hope of good weather.
A phenomenon that can be enjoyed without moderation, knowing that the next occultation of Venus by the Moon will not take place before April 6, 2016…