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Credit & Copyright: Wojtek Rychlik
Explanation:
Look up into the sky tonight and without a telescope
or binoculars you might have
a
view like this one of Moon, planets and stars.
The lovely
photo was taken on March 23rd,
and captures the crescent Moon on the horizon with Venus above it.
Both brilliant celestial bodies are over-exposed.
Farther above Venus is the tinted glow of Mars with
the Pleiades star cluster just to the red planet's right.
The V-shaped arrangement of
stars to the left of Mars is the Hydaes star cluster.
Bright red giant
Aldebaran, not itself a member of the Hyades
cluster, marks the top left of the V.
During
the next week, all five naked-eye planets,
Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, along with
the Moon
will grace the evening sky together - a
lunar and planetary spectacle that can be
enjoyed by skygazers
around the world.
But look just after sunset, low on the western horizon,
to see Mercury before it sets.
The next similar gathering
of the planets will be in 2008.
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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: planetary alignment - planets - Moon
Publications with words: planetary alignment - planets - Moon
See also: