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14.02.2015
Nach dem wir aktuell schon verstärkt UFO-Meldungen bei unserer UFO-Meldestelle in Mannheim bei klarer Abenddämmerung durch die Planeten Venus und Jupiter haben, erwartet uns demnächst eine weitere astronomische Herausforderung am frühen Abendhimmel vom 20. Februar 2015. Mars und Venus stehen dicht nebeneinander bei der schmalen Mondsichel und werden sicherlich für manchen Zufallsbeobachter "UFO-Alarm" auslösen, daher hier schon einmal die astronomische Erklärung:
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When it comes to "eyeball astronomy," nothing is more satisfying than to see a pair of celestial objects appear close together in the sky, what astronomers call a conjunction. And 2015, notes S&T's longtime contributing editor Fred Schaaf, truly deserves to be called the "Year of the Conjunctions." In January we watched Venus and Mercury come together in the evening twilight, and this month features a similarly close and prolonged pairing of Venus and Mars.
The two worlds have been edging closer together all month. Venus has become obvious in the southwest after sunset, and it's been climbing a little higher week by week. Mars, meanwhile, has lingered in roughly the same part of the post-sunset sky for several months, refusing to depart. Last week Mars was about 8° above Venus, but for a 9-day run beginning February 17th, the two remain within 2° of each other. That separation shrinks to less than 1° from the 20th through the 23rd.
The climax comes on February 21st, when the two planets are just 0.4° apart at dusk, as seen from the Americas. Since the pairing is so close, Schaaf cautions, "little Mars might be hard to see in Venus's glare without optical aid."
Both worlds will fit together in a medium-power telescopic view, with Venus clearly dominant — nearly 100 times brighter. Its dazzling yellow-white disk, shining at magnitude –3.9, is 12 arcseconds wide and 88% illuminated, whereas peach-colored Mars is much dimmer, magnitude +1.2 or +1.3, and just 4 arcseconds across.
As an added bonus, a thin crescent Moon is passing through this celestial scene. It clusters dramatically with the two planets in the deepening dusk on February 21st, one day before Venus and Mars are closest. Get those cameras ready!
The dance continues through the end of February, when Mars is still within 4° of Venus. But by then the ordering has switched, with Mars lower down. Yet the Red Planet refuses to exit the evening stage. Watch carefully these coming weeks, and you'll see it seemingly slide to the right (northward) relative to the sunset point — yet not really get any lower!
Quelle. Sky&Telescope
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Update: 18.02.2015
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Mars und Venus üben schon und man kann es sehen wenn kein Hochnebel die Sicht behindert...
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VENUS AND MARS: When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and face west. Venus is beaming through the twilight, so bright that it is often mistaken for a landing plane. Wait a while as the sky grows darker. Fainter Mars pops out right beside Venus. Didier Van Hellemont photographed the pair at sunset on Feb. 17th over Sint-Laureins, Belgium:
In only a few days, the two planets will be dramatically closer together. At closest approach on Feb. 21st, they will be only 0.4o apart, less than the width of a full Moon. The night before closest approach might be best of all: On Feb. 20th, the crescent Moon will pass right by the converging planets. Mark both dates on your calendar, Feb. 20th and 21st, and watch the western sky at sunset. It's a great way to end the day.
Quelle: Spaceweather
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Update: 20.02.2015 / 19.00 MEZ
Am Westhimmel über Mannheim
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Fotos: ©-hjkc
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