Venus and Jupiter will be in close
conjunction on Tuesday and Wednesday, offering a breathtaking
spectacle in the evening sky.
The two planets, respectively the third and fourth
brightest celestial bodies after the sun and moon, will be easy
to spot hanging low and bright in the western sky.
"The spectacle is guaranteed," said astrophysicist Gianluca
Masi, responsible for the project Virtual Telescope.
"The ideal time to observe the two planets in all their
splendour will be around 21.30 tomorrow (Wednesday), from a
position with an unobstructed view of the horizon," he said.
With a small telescope it will be possible to observe Venus
as a brilliant, fat crescent and Jupiter accompanied by its four
largest moons.
"Conjunctions are not that rare but this is special because
the planets pass very close together," Paolo Volpini of the
Italian Astrophile Union said.
To complete the spectacle, Saturn will be clearly visible
in the south and an almost full moon in the east.
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