STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Monday, 18 August 2014

[Demeter]

2. When worlds collide (or seem to)

Set your alarm for dawn! Venus and Jupiter are converging for a spectacular conjunction in the early morning sky. At closest approach on the morning of August 18th, the two brightest planets in the solar system will be only 0.2o apart. This is what they looked like one day early, August 17th, from the Canadian side of Lake Ontario:



To see the show, find a place with a good view of the north-northeastern horizon. No telescope is required. Jupiter and Venus are bright enough to see with the naked eye even from light polluted cities. In fact, as Colwell's photo shows, you can see them even after the sun begins to brighten the dawn. A tight conjunction of Venus and Jupiter framed by twilight blue is a great way to start the day.

For more information, see this video from NASA:

Courtesy of http://spaceweather.com/