Posted on 12/08/2020 3:22:12 PM PST by MtnClimber
Explanation: Don’t miss the coming great conjunction. In just under two weeks, the two largest planets in our Solar System will angularly pass so close together in Earth's sky that the Moon would easily be able to cover them both simultaneously. This pending planetary passage -- on December 21 -- will be the closest since 1623. Jupiter and Saturn will remain noticeably bright and can already be seen together toward the southwest just after sunset. Soon after dusk is the best time to see them -- because they set below the horizon soon after. In mid-November, the Jovian giants were imaged together here about three degrees apart -- and slowly closing. The featured image, including a crescent moon, captured the dynamic duo beyond the Cape Murro di Porco Lighthouse in Syracuse, Sicily, Italy.
For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then zoom by moving the magnifying glass over an area and then clicking. The side bars will move the zoomed area over the photograph.
I hope everyone can see the photos OK. The downloads are really slow for me tonight.
Notice to the right is the plane of the Milky Way galaxy plunging vertically into the horizon. The galactic center is about where the MW meets the horizon in this shot. There, in the constellation Sagittarius, some 23,000 light years distant, lies a supermassive black hole 2-3 million times the mass of the sun.


Beautiful photos
Thank you

On December 21, [2020] Jupiter and Saturn will get so close in the sky that they will almost appear to merge with one another. Such a conjunction has not occurred in December for some 800 years.
Source: Astronomy Magazine
https://astronomy.com/news/2020/12/jupiter-and-saturn-will-form-rare-christmas-star-on-winter-solstice
MtnClimber:
Its coming through just fine!
Thanks for posting.
Corona Australis?
Everybody knows Corona comes from Mexico!................
A Sicilian lighthouse? Hope it doesn’t blow a circuit breaker.
Because it will make a deal you can’t re-fuse?..............
Throughout ancient history, events in the heavens were interpreted by ancients as forecasting important events that would be seen on Earth.
In this case, superstitious fools like Kalifornia's Newsome, NY's Cuomo, Pennsylvania's Wolf will see the great conjunction as forecasting 6 more months of CORONA virus lockdowns.
They won't let a unique astronomical event go to waste.
That graphic also says in the lower left, June 15th.
It was just something I found while looking for photos of the Jup-Sat conjunction. Not sure I ever heard of “Corona Australis” before now. Didn’t even notice it on the image.
...one hour before sunrise...
I can’t stay up that late, OR get up that early!
Ignore that graphic. It apparently was a view from just SOUTH of the equator. For the northern hemisphere it is an evening event.
It’s also dated June.
However, the image is still basically valid for the general relationship between the two planets and the constellation they are in, which is Sagittarius.
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