Until now, Venus lit up the morning sky in solitary splendour.But this week, the brightest planet, which appears an hour before sunrise, will be joined by its closest rival Jupiter, usually an evening fixture.
More incredibly yet, Mercury and Mars are visible in the vicinity in a rare temporary alliance low in the eastern sky. The astronomical phenomenon is unlikely to occur again before 2040. The planets will all move position until, by May 31, Jupiter, Mars, Venus and Mercury will appear in one line with a thin crescent Moon forming a triangle with Mars and Venus. Saturn, the only other planet visible to the naked eye, remains holding the fort in the evening sky.
The convergence is a phenomenon caused by the position of Earth and the way the planets circle the Sun with an individual routine. As seen from here, Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter are almost in the one line. Hence they appear close together in the sky.
Three of the planets alter their position a lot over the course of the period, but Jupiter will hardly move at all and so appears furthest from the other three. ...read more...
