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Credit & Copyright: Stephen Mudge
Explanation:
On January 1, a
Mars-assisted
viewing opportunity allowed
binocular-equipped skygazers to cross an
ice giant off their life list.
Remarkably, the line-of-sight to the bright Red Planet could guide
you to within 0.02 degrees of a faint,
pale Neptune
in Earth's night skies.
Taken within 3 hours of their closest conjunction, these
panels capture the odd couple's appearance in skies over
Brisbane, Australia.
A wide field view includes the new year's
slender crescent
moon near the western horizon and Venus as the brilliant
evening star.
Mars and Neptune are indicated at the upper right.
The two inset magnified views were taken with the same telephoto lens
and so do show the Mars-Neptune conjunction and the apparent size of
the crescent moon at the same scale.
This week Neptune
hangs out near Venus on the western sky.
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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: Mars - Neptune
Publications with words: Mars - Neptune
See also: