| Title: |
Mars & Saturn Conjunction in Leo |
| Location: |
Hawaiian Islands & Mainland U.S. |
| Date / Time: |
July 5th, 9th & 10th |
| Comments: |
On the evening of July 5th, a thin crescent Moon hangs below Saturn, Mars, & Regulus (the brightest star in the constellation Leo), creating an intriguing Òcelestial line-up.Ó
Viewing from west to east, you will see the Moon next to Regulus, followed by Mars & then Saturn. Mars appears a ruddy rust color, between blue-white Regulus, & pale yellow Saturn (the brightest of the 3). Under clear skies, the line-up should be viewable in the west as soon as itÕs dark enough after sunset; (by 8:15 PM). YouÕll want to view early however, because this gathering will set by 10PM.
On July 9th & 10th, there will be a conjunction of Mars & Saturn in Leo. While the planets are actually separated by 817 million miles, they are currently placed in their orbits so that, as viewed from Earth, they appear close to each other. While Saturn takes 29 years to orbit the Sun, Mars completes an orbit in 687 days. Over the past few weeks, Mars has been slowly creeping closer to Saturn. Observe as the Red Planet moves closer each night, catching up with slower orbiting Saturn on July 9th-10th. (I think of the planets as being on concentric race tracks, with faster moving Mars overtaking slower Saturn). Mars then pulls away from Saturn as they both drop closer to the western horizon at sunset.
On July 10th the 2 planets will APPEAR to be separated by only 42 arc minutes. Although the planets will be closest on July 10th, the 9th is also good for viewing. |
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Maintained by Roz Reiner - Kauai, Hawaii
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