Image of Venus and Jupiter via NASA/JPL-Caltech. Image processing by Tanya Oleksuik.
DOHA: Witness the two brightest planets in our solar system appear next to each other tomorrow night in Qatar sky.
Qatar Calendar House announced recently that Jupiter and Venus will conjunct where the angular distance between them during this phenomenon will be approximately one arc degree.
Both planets are actually 600 million kilometers or 400 million miles apart, in reality.
For those who wanted to witness and see this amazing spectacle in the sky, Astrophotographer Ajith Everester of Everester Observatory will be organising an event for the public tomorrow.
“This happening is not very rare, and happens every three years when the two planets are this close.
The plan is to go live from my observatory and we will accommodate the first 50 people,” Everester told The Peninsula.
He revealed that the best time to look at the planets is between 6pm to 7:30pm.
In our solar system, conjunctions regularly happen because "the planets orbit around the Sun in approximately the same plane - the ecliptic plane - and thus trace similar paths across our sky,” according to National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Science website, EarthSky said: “By March 1-2, Venus and Jupiter will fit inside a single binocular field of view. Don’t miss them! From then on, Venus will be higher in the sky as Jupiter sinks toward the horizon and the sun.”
“At conjunction, Venus will pass 0.5 degrees (the width of a full moon) from Jupiter. It’ll be a stunning sight.”
The conjunction should be visible to the naked eye under clear skies, but binoculars or a telescope will improve the view.
Interested individuals who want to participate in Everester’s event may call the Everester Observatory on 5548 2045. Only the first 50 people will be accommodated.
