Sunset Planets

Sunset Planets

The sunset planet show is still underway. When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look west. Venus and Mercury are shining through the twilight less than 1^o apart. Alan Dyer photographed the conjunction on Jan. 10th from the City of Rocks State Park in New Mexico:

"Mercury is nearing its greatest angle away from the sun and will remain near Venus for the next week," says Dyer. "Mercury is very easy to sight with unaided eyes. If you have not seen the innermost planet, this weekend is a good chance to check it off your 'to see' list."
Dyer adds "a fact to keep in mind: both planets have probes orbiting them, but both are nearing the end of their missions. Europe's Venus Express has ended its mission and is about to make its final plunge into the dense Venusian atmosphere. At Mercury, NASA's Messenger probe has gained a small reprieve, with it now expecting to impact on Mercury at the end of April, a month later than expected."
Two bright planets + two doomed spacecraft = one amazing sunset. Take a look!

From SpaceWeather.com