Celestial wonder: How people in Telangana, Andhra can see conjunction of Jupiter, Venus
The two planets will pass incredibly near today, so close that it will be difficult to tell them apart.
By Anoushka Caroline Williams Published on 2 March 2023 11:35 AM IST
Representational Image
Hyderabad: The day of Venus' conjunction with Jupiter has arrived. As the two planets come close to each other in Earth's view, it is a celestial wonder to watch out for.
People in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are reporting seeing two bright non-twinkling star-like objects in the west after sunset for the past two weeks. Numerous people uploaded photos of these planets on social media.
Today when you look up into the sky, look towards the west. Jupiter and Venus will emerge near the horizon about an hour after sunset, about half a degree apart, which is the width of a full moon or roughly one-quarter the width of your thumb at arm's length.
In summary, the two planets will pass incredibly near today, so close that it will be difficult to tell them apart. Nevertheless, if you look closely, you will notice that Venus is on the right and appears significantly brighter than Jupiter.
After that, they'll begin to drift apart night after night, with Venus rising and Jupiter falling towards the horizon and the sun.
Distances in Numbers as on March 2:
On March 2, 2023, Venus is located at a distance of 20,34,53,104 km from Earth, while Jupiter is located at a distance of 86,46,75,692 km. Despite these planets appearing close to one other when viewed with the naked eye or via telescopes, In actuality, Venus and Jupiter will be 65,94,90,000 km (65.94 Crore Kilometers) apart.
Jupiter and Venus are located far from earth, in respective orbits. How can they appear Close to Earth's Sky?
The reason for this is a combination of Jupiter's and Venus' orbital positions, as well as Earth's position in its orbit around the Sun. In other words, the geometrical positions of Planet Jupiter, Venus, and Earth around the Sun are currently such that planets placed far to either side of Earth in their respective orbits appear close to each other.
What to expect :
Jupiter and Venus will make a conjunction in the skies around the world, in what will be one of the rarest celestial phenomena. Venus and Jupiter will be separated by only 0.5 degrees in the sky and will appear to overlap each other as they continue to move around in their orbit as seen from Earth.
The two planets will align with the moon and come spectacularly near to each other, creating the illusion that they are a single entity.
