BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Brad Klein reviews upcoming astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s "Backyard Astronomy Guy," Marty McGuire.
This week, they discuss the two brightest objects in the evening sky. Neither are stars.
Just after sunset, Venus is shining brightly in the Western sky.
“It's beautifully bright at this time of year, visible in the West after sunset,” says McGuire. “It's the brightest object out there.”
At this time, Venus is serving as the "evening star," although, in fact, it is a planet. As it continues on its own orbit around the sun, it will eventually be visible only in the pre-dawn hours. Then it is commonly known as the "morning star."
All through the month of December, there is a second very bright object in the evening sky. That is the giant planet Jupiter. As Venus sets in the Western sky, Jupiter is still rising in the East. Using just binoculars, you may be able to make out four of Jupiter’s moons as tiny points of light on either side of the planet. Those are the so-called Galilean moons, and they make it easy to identify the planet with binoculars.
