04/30/2014 – Ephemeris – It’s Wednesday, do you know where your planets are?

Ephemeris for Wednesday, April 30th.  The sun rises at 6:34.  It’ll be up for 14 hours and 11 minutes, setting at 8:45.   The moon, 1 day past new, will set at 10:25 this evening.

It’s Wednesday and once again time to locate the bright planets for this week.   Brilliant Jupiter will be in the western sky as darkness falls tonight.  It will set at 1:54 a.m.  Reddish Mars is in Virgo and outshines the bright bluish star Spica below left of it as darkness falls.  Mars is in the south-east as it gets dark.  It will pass due south at 11:51 p.m.  It’s 59.5 million miles away now, and moving away, and will set at 5:41 a.m.  Saturn will rise at 9:24 p.m.  It’s in the faint constellation of Libra the scales this year.  It will pass due south at 2:23 a.m.  The telescope will bring out Saturn’s beautiful rings, whose short dimensions now are as wide as the planet.  Brilliant Venus will rise in the east at 5:05 a.m. and will stay pretty low to the horizon.

Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Jupiter, the Moon and the setting winter constellations in the west at 10 p.m. on April 30, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Jupiter and satellites through a telescope at 10 p.m. on April 30, 2014. The satellite Io is being occulted by Jupiter and will reappear at 11:56 p.m. (3:56 UT May 1, 2014). Created using Stellarium.

The crescent Moon at 10 p.m. on April 30, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Mars, Saturn and some spring constellation at 11 p.m. April 30, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Telescopic view of Mars, 11 p.m. April 30, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Telescopic view of Saturn and some of its moons at 11 p.m. April 30, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Venus in the twilight at 6 a.m. May 1, 2014. Created using Stellarium.

Telescopic view of Venus on May 1, 2014. Created using Stellarium.