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Credit & Copyright: Daniel Herron
Explanation:
Just as
the Moon goes
through phases,
Venus' visible sunlit hemisphere waxes
and wanes.
This
composite
of telescopic images illustrates the steady changes
for the inner planet, seen in the west as the evening star,
as Venus grows larger but narrows to a thin crescent from
December 20, 2016 through March 10.
Gliding along its interior orbit between Earth and Sun, Venus grows
larger during that period because it is approaching planet Earth.
Its crescent narrows, though, as Venus swings closer to our line-of-sight
to the Sun.
Closest to the Earth-Sun line but passing about 8 degrees north of the Sun
on March 25, Venus will reach a (non-judgmental)
inferior
conjunction.
Soon after, Venus will shine clearly above the eastern horizon in
predawn skies as planet Earth's
morning star.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Venus - phases
Publications with words: Venus - phases
See also: