2023-05-15 18:10:03
We enjoy again and again the luminous planet Venus very high on the western horizon in the evening sky. This planet is a bit like Earth’s sister, even if today it doesn’t look like it at all. Large like the Earth, the length of the day is 243 Earth days. Imagine endless nights and days… monotonous weather, because it’s cloudy every day.
You wouldn’t even see the Sun if you went on vacation on the Étoile du Berger. With temperatures close to 500°C, the planet is obviously uninhabitable even for current robots. It is currently the brightest point in the sky and I particularly recommend the evening of May 22, 23 and 24, 2023 to observe it. On the 22nd Venus will be above the Moon, on the 23rd it will be very close to a nice crescent moon and on the 24th the Moon will be above Venus. With a telescope, you will easily see that Venus shows a nice neighborhood.
The other planets to observe
In the first part of the night, only the planets Venus and Mars will be observable. The two planets are slowly approaching and will be really close in mid-June. I advise you to observe the beautiful red on May 24, 2023 in the evening when it will be next to a magnificent Lunar crescent. To see the other planets, you will have to get up early or go to bed late, depending on your preferences. The planet Saturn is more and more visible throughout the second part of the night. You will see it rising on the eastern horizon in the constellation Aquarius and peaking in the south before sunrise. Don’t miss its beautiful rapprochement with the Moon on June 10. For Jupiter and Mercury, it will be necessary to wait for the lights of dawn to observe them low on the eastern horizon. Note two nice rapprochements between the Moon and Jupiter, on May 17 and June 10, 2023 in the morning.
Constellations to discover
Let’s discover the constellations of Centaurus and Wolf which are a little difficult to see on the horizon for countries in northern Africa, but which become very easy to detect for observers in the southern hemisphere and near the Equator . The Centaur is one of the largest constellations and it is supposed to be seen as a half-man, half-horse creature. The Wolf is an old, little observed constellation. For the Greeks, it was an animal that the Centaur carried impaled on his spear. It was in this constellation that in 1006, a supernova was observed. Brighter than Venus for 2 years, this explosion of stars has been recounted in texts by multiple civilizations.
A new glasses to win
A new astronomical telescope is once again put into play thanks to our partners SSVI and RFI. To participate, send on our page Facebook Astronomy Africa your most beautiful photos or video or even a nice text that you have written. The winner will be announced on July 15, 2023. Good observations. Good heavens to all and remember the sky is the biggest screen, just look up.
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