Moon still near Jupiter September 10
6 comments Print Me Email to FriendTonight is Wednesday, Sep 10 2008
In the past few nights, if you’ve looked southward in the evening, you must have seen two bright objects in the sky – Jupiter and the moon.
Jupiter is some 80 times too puny to ignite as stars do and shine with its own internal light. But it is the largest planet in our solar system, a massive ball of gases crossed by bands of swirling clouds. Earth’s moon is small and uninteresting in contrast to Jupiter. But – because our moon is so close to us – it outshines Jupiter easily tonight and every night in Earth’s sky.
The moon’s cycle in our sky is monthly, as the moon moves once a month in orbit around Earth. But Jupiter’s cycle is yearly and based mainly on Earth’s own smaller, faster orbit around the sun. In other words, we see Jupiter do the same thing in our sky, year after year. We see it appear first in the east before dawn – then shift slowly to the east at midnight – then the east at sunset – all as Earth moves relentlessly in its orbit. Now Jupiter is in none of those places. The best time to see it has passed, and this planet is beginning its slow descent westward and ultimately into the sun’s glare.
Jupiter will be visible, but fading, over the coming autumn months. It will be inching closer to the sun at the end of each new day. By early 2009, Jupiter will be very near the sunset. It’ll disappear in the sun’s glare … only to emerge again in spring of ’09 … you guessed it … in the east before dawn.
i love u!!!!
i love u!!!!
i love u!!!!
Hi Kristen!
We love you, too.
Deborah
I found the information on the above web page very interesting to read. I think that seeing Jupiter in the night sky was a very interesting discovery. It was also interesting to find out when Jupiter will be visible again in the near future.
Thanks Edward. The sky is always changing, so be sure to check back.
All the best,
Deborah