Posted on 04/10/2022 4:43:25 AM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: Fainter stars in the zodiacal constellation Capricornus are scattered near the plane of the ecliptic in this field of view. The two brightest ones at center aren't stars at all though, but the planets Mars and Saturn. Taken on the morning of April 4, the telescopic snapshot captured their tantalizing close conjunction in a predawn sky, the pair of planets separated by only about 1/3 of a degree. That's easily less than the apparent width of a Full Moon. Can you tell which planet is which? If you guessed Mars is the redder one , you'd be right. Above Mars, slightly fainter Saturn still shines with a paler yellowish tinge in reflected sunlight. Even at the low magnification, Saturn's largest and brightest moon Titan can be spotted hugging the planet very closely on the left.
(Excerpt) Read more at apod.nasa.gov ...
For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.
Very impressive!
Fascinating!
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I’m still looking Back at the Conjunction on 12-21-20
Jupiter and Saturn.
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“This Means Something!”
Great resource this APOD!
Thanks MR. MTN!
These things always happen at pre-dawn or late at night.
Why can I not see them during the daytime?..... : )
Ah, but can you build a model of it out of mashed potatoes ?
“Weird Al” did it in
“UHF” and I’m Willing to take a Hit for the Team!
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Ooh Rah!
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