12/06/2022 – Ephemeris – The Moon will pass in front of Mars tomorrow night

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Tuesday, December 6th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 57 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:06. The Moon, 1 day before full, will set at 7:45 tomorrow morning.

Late tomorrow evening we might get to view a really cool event, clouds permitting, when the full moon will cover or in astronomical lingo occult the planet Mars. In the Grand Traverse Region, this will occur for an hour between approximately 10:15 to 11:15 pm. The exact times depend on your location, and can vary by a minute or two over the IPR coverage area. Being a full moon, Mars might be difficult to spot. It may take binoculars to spot it below, left of the Moon by 9:30, and a small telescope when Mars is near the edge of the Moon. The disappearance of Mars will be at the Moon’s 7 o’clock position, and reappearance at the 4 o’clock position.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Mars ingress and egress chart and times for Traverse City, MI. The times will vary by a minute or two in the IPR listening area, ingress being earlier to the west and north and later east and south. Egress times will be earlier west and later east of Traverse City. Mars takes about a minute to completely disappear and reappear again because it’s not an unresolvable point like stars.

Occultation of Mars map. The occultation of Mars by the Moon will be visible from within the bounded area. For Traverse City, MI, Mars will disappear around 10:15 pm, December 7, 2022, and reappear around 11:15 pm.

In astronomical events of solar eclipses and occultations YOU are part of the event. No, not you, but your location. Whether you see the event or not or what time the contacts (ingress, egress) happen depends on your location. And will happen for that location whether you are there, or it’s clear, or not.

12/05/2022 – Ephemeris – Mars will hide behind the full Moon Wednesday night

This is Ephemeris for Monday, December 5th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 58 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:05. The Moon, 2 days before full, will set at 6:36 tomorrow morning.

Late Wednesday night we might get to view a really cool event when the full moon will cover or in astronomical lingo occult the planet Mars. In the Grand Traverse Region, this will occur for an hour between approximately 10:15 to 11:15 pm. The exact times depend on your location, and can vary by several minutes or more. Being a full moon, Mars might be difficult to spot. I’ll have more and hopefully more accurate information tomorrow. When astronomical objects line up like this, it’s called a syzygy. This time it’s a lineup of the Sun, Earth Moon and Mars in nearly a straight line, with both the Moon and Mars in opposition from the Sun on the same night. When the Moon is in opposition, we call it a full moon instead.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Mars ingress and egress chart and times for Traverse City, MI. The times will vary by a minute or two in the IPR listening area, ingress being earlier to the west and north and later east and south. Egress times will be earlier west and later east of Traverse City.

World map showing the area that the occultation of Mars will be visible. Occultation visibility will move from west to east. Credit: Occult version 4.

 

12/02/2022 – Ephemeris – Astronomical events tonight and tomorrow in Traverse City

This is Ephemeris for Friday, December 2nd. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 2 minutes, setting at 5:03, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:02. The Moon, 2 days past first quarter, will set at 3:07 tomorrow morning.

We have a big astronomy and space weekend starting tonight at 8 pm I’ll be giving a talk about the Star of Bethlehem at Northwestern Michigan College’s Rogers Observatory located south of Traverse City on Birmley Road, with observing at 9 pm, clouds permitting. This is part of the December meeting of the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society. Tomorrow is NASA Family Day at the Dennos Museum Center. There are fun activities at 1 pm, making comets and exploring the phases of the Moon. At 2 pm, Dr. Jerry Dobek from NMC and the GTAS will be giving a talk at the Milliken Auditorium. Museum admission is waived for the event, which is to celebrate the Museum’s having a NASA Kiosk through the end of the month.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

12/01/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s preview December skies

This is Ephemeris for Thursday, December 1st. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 3 minutes, setting at 5:03, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:01. The Moon, 1 day past first quarter, will set at 1:57 tomorrow morning.

Let’s preview December’s skies. Winter will officially arrive on the 21st at 4:48 p.m., the winter solstice. The noontime Sun will dip from 23 ½ degrees to a bit less than 22 degrees above the southern horizon on that day. There will be little movement in the sunset times: In the Traverse City/Interlochen area this will be from 5:03 today, down to 5:02 and then advancing to 5:11 at the end of the month. The sunrise times will advance from 7:59 today to 8:20 on the 31st. The Moon will pass in front of Mars on the 7th, the night of the full moon and Mars opposition. The Geminid meteor shower whose maximum is on the morning of the 14th will have interference from the last quarter Moon.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

December Evening Star Chart

Star Chart for December 2022 (9 p.m. EST December 15, 2022). Click on image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program. Click on image to enlarge.
Credit my LookingUp program.

The planets and stars are plotted for the 15th at 9 pm EST in the evening and 6 a.m. for the morning chart. These are the chart times. Note that Traverse City is located approximately 45 minutes behind our time meridian, West 75° longitude. (An hour 45 minutes behind our daylight saving time meridian during EDT).

December Morning Star Chart

Star Chart for December mornings, 2022 (6 a.m. EST December 15, 2022). Click on image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program.

For a list of constellation names to go with the abbreviations, click here.

• Pointer stars at the front of the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris, the North Star.
• The leaky bowl of the Big Dipper drips on Leo.
• Follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper to the star Arcturus, then
• Follow the spike to Spica.
• The Summer Triangle is in red.
• GemR on the star charts is the radiant of the Geminid meteor shower, which peaks on the morning of the 14th.

Twilight Limits, Nautical and Astronomical

			EST
	Morning	Twilight	Evening	Twilight	Dark	Night	Moon
Date	Astro.	Nautical	Nautical	Astro.	Start	End	Illum.
2022-12-01	6h20m	6h56m	18h16m	18h51m	0h44m	6h20m	0.67
2022-12-02	6h21m	6h57m	18h16m	18h51m	1h57m	6h21m	0.77
2022-12-03	6h22m	6h57m	18h16m	18h51m	3h08m	6h22m	0.85
2022-12-04	6h23m	6h58m	18h15m	18h51m	4h18m	6h23m	0.92
2022-12-05	6h24m	6h59m	18h15m	18h50m	5h27m	6h24m	0.96
2022-12-06	6h25m	7h00m	18h15m	18h50m	–	–	0.99
2022-12-07	6h26m	7h01m	18h15m	18h50m	–	–	1
2022-12-08	6h27m	7h02m	18h15m	18h50m	–	–	0.99
2022-12-09	6h28m	7h03m	18h15m	18h51m	–	–	0.96
2022-12-10	6h28m	7h04m	18h15m	18h51m	18h51m	18h55m	0.92
2022-12-11	6h29m	7h05m	18h15m	18h51m	18h51m	19h56m	0.86
2022-12-12	6h30m	7h05m	18h16m	18h51m	18h51m	21h01m	0.79
2022-12-13	6h31m	7h06m	18h16m	18h51m	18h51m	22h06m	0.71
2022-12-14	6h31m	7h07m	18h16m	18h51m	18h51m	23h11m	0.62
2022-12-15	6h32m	7h07m	18h16m	18h52m	18h52m	–	0.52
2022-12-16	6h33m	7h08m	18h16m	18h52m	18h52m	0h16m	0.42
2022-12-17	6h33m	7h09m	18h17m	18h52m	18h52m	1h22m	0.32
2022-12-18	6h30m	7h05m	18h13m	18h49m	18h49m	2h31m	0.22
2022-12-19	6h31m	7h06m	18h14m	18h49m	18h49m	3h43m	0.14
2022-12-20	6h31m	7h07m	18h14m	18h50m	18h50m	5h00m	0.07
2022-12-21	6h32m	7h07m	18h15m	18h50m	18h50m	6h20m	0.02
2022-12-22	6h32m	7h08m	18h15m	18h51m	18h51m	6h32m	0
2022-12-23	6h33m	7h08m	18h16m	18h51m	18h51m	6h33m	0.01
2022-12-24	6h33m	7h08m	18h16m	18h52m	18h52m	6h33m	0.05
2022-12-25	6h33m	7h09m	18h17m	18h52m	19h48m	6h33m	0.11
2022-12-26	6h34m	7h09m	18h17m	18h53m	21h11m	6h34m	0.2
2022-12-27	6h34m	7h10m	18h18m	18h54m	22h31m	6h34m	0.3
2022-12-28	6h34m	7h10m	18h19m	18h54m	23h47m	6h34m	0.41
2022-12-29	6h35m	7h10m	18h20m	18h55m	–	6h35m	0.52
2022-12-30	6h35m	7h10m	18h20m	18h56m	0h59m	6h35m	0.62
2022-12-31	6h35m	7h10m	18h21m	18h56m	2h10m	6h35m	0.72

Twilight calendar was generated using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).

See my blog post: Twilight Zone for the definitions of the different periods of twilight here: https://bobmoler.wordpress.com/2018/09/27/.

NASA Calendar of Planetary Events

     Date     Time    Event
Dec  1  Th            Venus: 9.9° E
     1  Th   7:52 pm  Moon-Jupiter: 2.6° N
     5  Mo   7:38 am  Moon Ascending Node
     6  Tu   2:26 pm  Moon-Pleiades: 2.9° N
     7  We  11:08 pm  Full Cold Moon
     7  We  11:21 pm  Moon-Mars: 0.6° S, Occultation!
     7  We  11:24 pm  Mars Opposition
     9  Fr   4:22 pm  Moon North Dec.: 27.4° N
    11  Su   2:06 am  Moon-Pollux: 2° N
    11  Su   7:30 pm  Moon Apogee: 405900 km
    14  We   7:53 am  Geminid Shower: ZHR = 120
    16  Fr   3:56 am  Last Quarter
    19  Mo   8:36 pm  Moon Descending Node
    21  We   9:59 am  Mercury Elongation: 20.1° E
    21  We   4:48 pm  Winter Solstice
    21  We   5:43 pm  Moon-Antares: 2.3° S
    22  Th   4:00 pm  Ursid Shower: ZHR = 10
    23  Fr   5:17 am  New Moon
    23  Fr   1:18 pm  Moon South Dec.: 27.4° S
    24  Sa   3:32 am  Moon Perigee: 358300 km
    24  Sa   6:29 am  Moon-Venus: 3.4° N
    26  Mo  11:11 am  Moon-Saturn: 4° N
    29  Th   2:13 am  Mercury-Venus: 1.4° N
    29  Th   5:29 am  Moon-Jupiter: 2.4° N
    29  Th   8:20 pm  First Quarter

All event times are given for UTC-5 Eastern Standard Time.

Sky Events Calendar by Fred Espenak and Sumit Dutta (NASA’s GSFC),
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SKYCAL/SKYCAL.html.

If you go to the above site, you can print out a list like the above for the entire year or calendar pages for your time zone.

Sun and Moon Rising and Setting Events

     LU                  Ephemeris of Sky Events for Interlochen/TC
December, 2022    Local time zone: EST
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| DATE |  SUN     SUN  DAYLIGHT|   TWILIGHT*    |MOON  RISE OR    ILLUM |
|      |  RISE    SET    HOURS |  END    START  |PHASE SET** TIME FRACTN|
+=======================================================================+
|Thu  1| 07:59a  05:03p  09:03 | 06:12p  06:50a |      Set  01:57a   65%|
|Fri  2| 08:01a  05:03p  09:02 | 06:12p  06:51a |      Set  03:07a   75%|
|Sat  3| 08:02a  05:02p  09:00 | 06:12p  06:52a |      Set  04:17a   83%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun  4| 08:03a  05:02p  08:59 | 06:12p  06:53a |      Set  05:27a   90%|
|Mon  5| 08:04a  05:02p  08:58 | 06:12p  06:54a |      Set  06:36a   95%|
|Tue  6| 08:05a  05:02p  08:57 | 06:12p  06:55a |      Set  07:45a   99%|
|Wed  7| 08:06a  05:02p  08:55 | 06:12p  06:56a |Full  Rise 04:31p  100%|
|Thu  8| 08:07a  05:02p  08:54 | 06:12p  06:57a |      Rise 05:10p   99%|
|Fri  9| 08:08a  05:02p  08:53 | 06:12p  06:58a |      Rise 05:59p   97%|
|Sat 10| 08:09a  05:02p  08:52 | 06:12p  06:58a |      Rise 06:54p   93%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 11| 08:10a  05:02p  08:52 | 06:12p  06:59a |      Rise 07:56p   87%|
|Mon 12| 08:10a  05:02p  08:51 | 06:12p  07:00a |      Rise 09:00p   80%|
|Tue 13| 08:11a  05:02p  08:50 | 06:12p  07:01a |      Rise 10:05p   72%|
|Wed 14| 08:12a  05:02p  08:50 | 06:13p  07:01a |      Rise 11:10p   63%|
|Thu 15| 08:13a  05:02p  08:49 | 06:13p  07:02a |      Rise 12:16a   54%|
|Fri 16| 08:13a  05:03p  08:49 | 06:13p  07:03a |L Qtr Rise 01:22a   44%|
|Sat 17| 08:14a  05:03p  08:48 | 06:14p  07:03a |      Rise 02:31a   34%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 18| 08:15a  05:03p  08:48 | 06:14p  07:04a |      Rise 03:43a   24%|
|Mon 19| 08:15a  05:04p  08:48 | 06:14p  07:05a |      Rise 04:59a   16%|
|Tue 20| 08:16a  05:04p  08:48 | 06:15p  07:05a |      Rise 06:20a    8%|
|Wed 21| 08:16a  05:05p  08:48 | 06:15p  07:06a |      Rise 07:41a    3%|
|Thu 22| 08:17a  05:05p  08:48 | 06:16p  07:06a |      Rise 08:56a    0%|
|Fri 23| 08:17a  05:06p  08:48 | 06:16p  07:07a |New   Set  05:08p    1%|
|Sat 24| 08:18a  05:06p  08:48 | 06:17p  07:07a |      Set  06:24p    4%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 25| 08:18a  05:07p  08:48 | 06:18p  07:08a |      Set  07:47p   10%|
|Mon 26| 08:19a  05:08p  08:49 | 06:18p  07:08a |      Set  09:10p   18%|
|Tue 27| 08:19a  05:08p  08:49 | 06:19p  07:08a |      Set  10:30p   28%|
|Wed 28| 08:19a  05:09p  08:49 | 06:20p  07:09a |      Set  11:46p   39%|
|Thu 29| 08:19a  05:10p  08:50 | 06:20p  07:09a |F Qtr Set  12:59a   49%|
|Fri 30| 08:19a  05:11p  08:51 | 06:21p  07:09a |      Set  02:09a   60%|
|Sat 31| 08:20a  05:11p  08:51 | 06:22p  07:09a |      Set  03:19a   70%|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
* Nautical Twilight
** Moonrise or moonset, whichever occurs between sunrise and sunset

Generated using my LookingUp for DOS program.

Mars occultation by the Moon, the night of December 7/8, 2022

Occultation of Mars map. The occultation of Mars by the Moon will be visible from within the bounded area. For Traverse City, MI Mars will disappear around 10:15 pm, December 7, 2022 and reappear around 11:15 pm. I’ll have more on it next week. Credit: Occult v4 app.

11/30/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s see where the naked-eye planets have wandered off to this week

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, November 30th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 5 minutes, setting at 5:04, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:59. The Moon, at first quarter today, will set at 12:44 tomorrow morning.

Let’s see where the naked-eye planets have wandered off to this week. Jupiter and Saturn will be visible this evening, in the southeastern sky, by 6 pm. Jupiter is the brighter of the two to the left, in the southeast, while dimmer Saturn is in the south at that hour. The Moon will be between them. The red planet Mars, though a morning planet for six more days, will be seen low on the east-northeast horizon at that hour. It’s located between the long horns of Taurus the bull. Mars is moving westward in its retrograde motion as the Earth will pass it a week from now. This evening, Mars will be as close as it can get to the Earth this close approach, 50.61 million miles (81.45 million kilometers). That same night, the full Moon will pass in front of it for an hour. So on the same night, in our area, we will have Mars opposition from the Sun and it being occulted by the Moon.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Panoramic view of planets and Moon this evening at 7 pm tonight, November 30, 2022. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium.

First Quarter Moon as it might be seen tonight in binoculars or low power telescope with labels for tonight, November 30, 2022. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.

Telescopic views of Saturn Jupiter and Mars (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification. The image of Mars doesn’t show it, but the white north polar cap will appear at the top or north limb of Mars. The planets are shown at 8 pm tonight, November 30, 2022. Apparent diameters: Saturn 16.43″, its rings 38.26″; Jupiter 43.56″. Mars 17.20″. Mars’ distance is 50.5 million miles (81.4 million kilometers). This is the closest it comes to the Earth this orbit. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).

The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on November 30, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on December 1st. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.

11/29/2022 – Ephemeris – Observing the Moon tonight

This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, November 29th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 6 minutes, setting at 5:04, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:58. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 11:28 this evening.

The illuminated part of tonight’s Moon will be a fat crescent shape, 12 hours, give or take from first quarter. Besides the lunar seas visible there are some large craters on its terminator, or sunrise line On the upper right are two distinctive craters near each other. The larger is Aristoteles named after the Greek philosopher Aristotle which is 53 miles wide. The smaller is Eudoxus, named after an older Greek philosopher, 41 miles in diameter. Both of these should be visible in small telescopes or even binoculars. They stand out because there are only a few small craters around them in pretty much flat terrain. Meanwhile Artemis 1’s Orion capsule is continuing to make a large lazy loop around the Moon before heading back to the Earth in 12 days.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Annotated Moon animation as it might appear tonight at 8 pm, November 29, 2022. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

Earthset from Artemis I’s Orion spacecraft, as it moves around to the far side of the Moon. Click on the image to enlarge it. Credit: NASA

11/28/2022 – Ephemeris – The Artemis Program

This is Ephemeris for Monday, November 28th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 8 minutes, setting at 5:04, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:57. The Moon, 2 days before first quarter, will set at 10:09 this evening.

Now that the Artemis I mission is ongoing, and the spacecraft is in a large orbit of the Moon, it’s time to look at the rest of the program. In 2024 the SLS or Space Launch System, which is the name for the whole rocket, will send a four-person crew in their Orion Capsule around the Moon and back. From what I’m seeing right now, it will be a simple mission. It doesn’t appear that they will actually orbit the Moon other than a free return trajectory back to the Earth. The mission a year or so after that will be one to attempt to land on one of the few flat sites near the south pole of the Moon. Speaking of the Moon, the planet Saturn will be about eight of the Moon’s diameter’s north or above the Moon tonight.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Earthset from Artemis I’s Orion spacecraft, as it moves around to the far side of the Moon. Click on the image to enlarge it. Credit: NASA

11/25/2022 – Ephemeris – The Anishinaabe constellations of Mooz and Ajijaak

This is Ephemeris for Native American Heritage Day, Friday, November 25th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 13 minutes, setting at 5:06, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:54. The Moon, 2 days past new, will set at 6:24 this evening.

The evening sky hosts two more of the constellations of the Anishinaabe native peoples of our area. High in the west, where the official constellation Cygnus the Swan is, or the Northern Cross is: Ajijaak, the Sand Hill Crane is flying upwards to the northeast through the Milky Way, wings outstretched, with its long legs trailing behind. Very high in the southern sky, above Jupiter this year, is the official constellation of Pegasus the flying horse is soaring upside down. His body is the Great Square, is an informal constellation. To the Anishinaabe, it is the Mooz (Moose), who is upright. His magnificent antlers take up the dim official constellation of Lacerta the lizard between Pegasus and Cygnus. Also in the sky is Ojiig the Fisher, our Big Dipper, whose bloody tail swooped down last month to paint the trees with their fall colors.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Mooz and Ajijaak finder animation for 8 pm tonight, November 25, 2022. This is looking almost to the zenith, facing southwest. First is the star field only, followed by the IAU (Western) constellation lines for Pegasus, Cygnus and Lacerta, along with their labels, and Jupiter, this year. This is followed by the constellation art. Then the Anishinaabe or Ojibwa constellation lines for Mooz and Ajijaak, Finally the constellation art for these are displayed.
Created using Stellarium and GIMP. Western constellation art by Johan Meuris. Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) art by A. Lee and W. Wilson from Ojibwe Giizhig Anung Masinaaigan – Ojibwe Sky Star Map, and is provided as part of Stellarium.

An animation of Fisher brushing his tail along the horizon on autumn nights. Created using Stellarium and GIMP. Constellation art from Ojibwe Giizhig Anung Masinaaigan – Ojibwe Sky Star Map.

11/24/2022 – Ephemeris – Finding Auriga the charioteer

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 24th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 15 minutes, setting at 5:07, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:52. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 5:31 this evening.

The constellation Auriga the charioteer is halfway up the sky in the east northeast at 9 p.m. It is a pentagon of stars, with the brilliant star Capella at the upper left of its corners. Capella represents a mama goat he’s carrying. A narrow triangle of stars just right of Capella are her kids, that is her baby goats. The Kids is an informal constellation or asterism. The Milky Way runs through Auriga, but it’s not very bright here. We are looking away from the center of the Milky Way to the more sparse outer parts of our galaxy. Within and near that pentagon, one can sweep with binoculars and low power telescopes to find several star clusters, groups of hundreds of stars born in the clump we still see them in. These star clusters will appear as fuzzy spots in binoculars.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Auriga the charioteer finder animation. Mars is nearby between the horns of Taurus for the next week and a half as it works its way to the upper right. The Kids asterism is best seen in the frame without markings because the Capella label covers one of its stars. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

11/23/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s see where the naked-eye planets have wandered off to this week

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, November 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 17 minutes, setting at 5:07, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:51. The Moon is new today, and won’t be visible.

Let’s see where the naked-eye planets have wandered off to this week. Jupiter and Saturn will be visible this evening, in the southeastern sky, as soon after sunset as it will be dark enough to see them, which would be by 6 pm. Jupiter is the brighter of the two to the left, in the southeast, while dimmer Saturn is in the south at that hour. The red planet Mars, though a morning planet, will rise tonight at 6:05 pm in the northeast. It’s located nearly between the tips of the long horns of Taurus the bull, but toward the letter V of stars that is the face of Taurus. Mars is moving westward in its retrograde motion as the Earth will pass it in a couple of weeks. Venus and Mercury, though in the evening sky, are too close to the Sun to be seen.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT -5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

A panorama from northeast to southwest of the planets Mars, Jupiter and Saturn at 7 pm tonight, November 23, 2022. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

Telescopic views of Saturn Jupiter and Mars (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification. The image of Mars doesn’t show it, but the white north polar cap will appear at the top or north limb of Mars. The planets are shown at 7 pm on the 23rd. Apparent diameters: Saturn 16.61″, its rings 38.69″; Jupiter 44.57″. Mars 17.05″. Mars’ distance is 51.0 million miles (82.1 million kilometers). The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).

The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on November 23, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 24th. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.