In Tonight’s Sky

If you live in the Americas take a few moments to step outside tonight after sunset and see if you can spot a crescent Moon next to a couple of bright, shiny objects in the west-southwest that you might mistake for stars, but are really the planets Venus and Jupiter. It should be quite a sight if you have a clear sky. (If you live elsewhere, you should be able to see the two planets, at least.)

The view to the WSW from my place (East Coast). Your view may vary. Made with TheSky, by Software Bisque.

I’ve been fiddling around with sky charts and views using a software program called TheSky (made by Software Bisque) and came up with what the program thinks my sky will look like from my location (on the East Coast of the U.S.).

Of course, the program assumes a crystal-clear sky, which is wonderfully heartening!  However,  it will be snowing, or at least cloudy, from my location. So, I might not get to see this lovely sight.

Update: the skies have cleared! So, we will likely get to see this sight tonight from where I live!

So, if you have clear skies, remember what they say in the cruise commercials: get OUT there!!

Oh, and if you live someplace chilly, dress warm. Take along a warm beverage, and a pair of binoculars to scan the sky for other interesting sights!  Make a night of it!

By the way, the program assigned colors to these two planets. They really won’t be blue and yellow… but look  more like bright, shiny starlike objects.  But, in order to differentiate them from the stars in the larger sky view that I took this image from, it’s easier to put a little color on the planets.  In other words, they’re just there to show you where to look near the Moon.  Just step outside and look to the west-southwest and you’ll get an eyefull!

Let Me Show You Them

Maybe if enough of us write about this on our blogs and magazine websites and online newspapers, the woo-woos of the world will think twice before they start calling all the observatories and planetariums in a dead panic over the appearance of bright lights shining in the western sky and assuming that this “mysterious apparition” means that aliens are coming.

Well, I can only hope.

Truth is, you can step out tonight, tomorrow and for the next few nights and see the planets Venus and Jupiter appearing very close to each other in the west-southwestern sky after sunset. This is perfectly normal and nothing to get wiggy about. It happens because planets orbit the Sun and we can see them from the surface of Earth.

And, the Moon gets in on the action, too. On December 1, 2008, folks in the Americas should be able to see a thin crescent Moon just above the horizon, making this an amazingly beautiful triple-play in the sunset skies.

This will be a gorgeous sight, provided the weather doesn’t get in the way. I note that there’s a storm front moving into my area just in time to cover up this blazing celestial display, but that’s not true everywhere. And, it turns out that Venus and the crescent Moon will reprise their act (without Jupiter) on December 31, New Year’s Eve!

So, make a note of this (the finder chart should help you identify what you’re seeing — remember, if you have clear skies and a good view to the west, you should have NO trouble spotting two planets for the next few nights. They’ll be joined on December 1 by the crescent Moon. (As far as I know, there will be NO words in the sky…)

Plan to step outside after sunset on Sunday and Monday and check out the view. It’s worth bundling up for because it will be pretty!  If it’s clear I plan to take a look.