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Download PLANET VISIBILITY Appearance of the planets
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PLANET VISIBILITY July 2016 – June 2017 The following diagrams show, in graphical form, when the five “naked-eye” planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are visible in the night sky during the period July 2016 – June 2017. In addition to the planet information, the diagrams show the time of sunset and sunrise as well as the end and start of astronomical twilight which is the time when the Sun is 18° below the horizon. The shaded area of each diagram indicates the range of dates/times that the planet is visible in the night sky. Appearance of the planets Unless they are near to the horizon, planets can be distinguished from the twinkling stars by their more steady appearance. Twinkling is caused by turbulence in the atmosphere which has a greater effect on the light coming from point sources (stars) than on the light from much closer planets which are not point sources. Another pointer to identifying planets is that they are usually one of the brightest of the objects in the night sky. Mercury is the most difficult to see of the bright planets; due to its close proximity to the Sun it is seldom seen in fully dark skies. Venus is readily identified by its brightness – being exceeded by only the Sun and Moon. Venus is often referred to as either the Evening Star (when visible in the west after sunset) or the Morning Star (in the east before sunrise). Mars is notable for its orange-red appearance and is popularly known as the Red Planet. Jupiter’s white light always outshines all of the stars whilst pale yellow Saturn is usually the least conspicuous of the five naked-eye planets. MERCURY 08:00 04:00 CU 02:00 LIG HT BE G ER M T WI ER SUN RIS E RY R I SES M ER INS C U RY RI SE S 06:00 S M 06:00 I C U RY R SE 04:00 02:00 00:00 00:00 22:00 M ER M S 20:00 Y CUR SET E U RC S RY ETS TW I L I G H T E NDS 22:00 18:00 16:00 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov 2016 Dec Jan 20:00 MERCURY SE TS SUNSET Feb Mar Apr RY CU ER ETS M S May Jun New Zealand Standard Time 08:00 New Zealand Standard Time ASTRONOMICAL Each diagram spans the hours of darkness, covering the period from 16:00 to 08:00 with midnight being represented by the central line across the diagram. For a given date, time runs from the bottom to the top of the diagram. Times are shown in terms of New Zealand Standard Time; one hour must be added when New Zealand Daylight Time is in force. Each diagram is plotted for Wellington, time differences at other locations in New Zealand will generally not exceed an hour. 18:00 16:00 2017 MERCURY is the most difficult of the bright planets to see as it always appears in close proximity to the Sun. This means it is visible only in the twilight sky towards the horizon. The best period to see Mercury in the morning sky will occur during May when the planet rises before twilight begins. Other morning appearances during late September to October and January – February are less favourable as Mercury rises during the dawn period. The best time to see Mercury in the evening will during August when it will set after twilight has ended. Other evening appearances during November – December and late March are less favourable as Mercury sets before twilight ends. During the last week of August locating Mercury will be made easier as it will be near, and south of, brighter Jupiter and much brighter Venus. 18 ASTRONOMICAL INFORMATION | New Zealand Nautical Almanac 2016 – 17 VENUS 06:00 06:00 SUN RISE 04:00 VE NU T W I L IG H T B EGI NS 02:00 04:00 S RISES 02:00 00:00 00:00 22:00 V 20:00 U EN SS ET S TW 22:00 ILIG HT S U N SE T END 20:00 S 18:00 16:00 18:00 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb 2016 Mar Apr May Jun 16:00 2017 VENUS will be visible as a bright object in the western sky from mid-August when it will set at the end of twilight. Its visibility will gradually increase so that during November Venus will set 3 hours after the Sun. During the rest of summer, Venus will appear to draw closer to the Sun and from February it will set during evening twilight. During May Venus will be very prominent in the early morning sky as it rises 4 hours ahead of the Sun. MARS 08:00 06:00 06:00 S UN R ISE 04:00 04:00 02:00 MA R S SE TS TW IL 02:00 IG HT B E GINS 00:00 00:00 22:00 22:00 T WI L 20:00 END IG H T S 20:00 S UN SE T 18:00 16:00 New Zealand Standard Time New Zealand Standard Time 08:00 18:00 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov 2016 Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun 16:00 2017 MARS will set shortly after 4 am at the beginning of July – by the start of December the red planet will be setting at midnight. At the end of February Mars will set at the end of twilight and over the following four months it will set during the twilight period. Mars will set half an hour after the Sun at the end of June. ASTRONOMICAL INFORMATION | New Zealand Nautical Almanac 2016 – 1719 ASTRONOMICAL 08:00 New Zealand Standard Time New Zealand Standard Time 08:00 JUPITER 08:00 06:00 TW I L 04:00 IGH T B EG JU 00:00 JU 20:00 PIT ER SE JU INS 02:00 22:00 06:00 S U N R ISE T W IL TS IGH D T EN PI TE R RI SE PI TE R SE 04:00 TS 00:00 S 22:00 S 20:00 SUNSE T 18:00 16:00 02:00 New Zealand Standard Time ASTRONOMICAL New Zealand Standard Time 08:00 18:00 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar 2016 Apr May Jun 16:00 2017 JUPITER sets before 11 pm at the beginning of July, but by the end of August it will set at the end of twilight. By mid-September Jupiter will be lost from sight in the glare of the Sun. During October the giant planet will reappear in the eastern sky ahead of sunrise and by late November the planet will be rising as twilight commences. Jupiter will rise progressively earlier during the night until early April when it will be rising at sunset and be visible throughout the night. Jupiter will then begin setting earlier – by the end of June this will occur at 1 am. Jupiter will draw within 0.1° of Venus towards the end of August. SATURN SA TU SE RN TS 06:00 S U N R IS E 04:00 SA TU 02:00 TW RN SE I LIG 06:00 04:00 HT BEG INS 02:00 TS SA TU 00:00 RN GH T E N D S T W IL I 22:00 20:00 RI SE 00:00 S 22:00 20:00 S UNSET 18:00 16:00 08:00 New Zealand Standard Time New Zealand Standard Time 08:00 18:00 Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov 2016 Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun 16:00 2017 SATURN will set shortly before twilight begins at the beginning of July and at midnight by late-September. Over the following months Saturn will set gradually earlier in the evening. By mid-November the ringed planet will set as twilight ends and by early December Saturn will be lost from sight in the glare of the Sun. Late in December Saturn will appear in the east shortly before sunrise. From mid-January Saturn will rise before twilight begins. Saturn will then rise progressively earlier during the night until mid-June when it will rise as the Sun sets and be visible throughout the night, setting at sunrise. At the end of October Saturn will be 3° north of much brighter Venus. 20 ASTRONOMICAL INFORMATION | New Zealand Nautical Almanac 2016 – 17