AROUND 200 people came down to our Skywatch at the Brewery. If you were one of them, I hope you enjoyed seeing Jupiter and some of its moons.
Jupiter is still on view, high in the south after sunset, but it's Venus which is dominating the sky. Look to the west an hour after sunset and you'll see Venus blazing there like a blue-white spark. It's outshining everything else in the sky at the moment, and it's not even at its brightest yet.
When you look at Venus you're looking at a world the same size as Earth but very different. With a poisonous atmosphere, acid for rain and crushing pressure on the surface, it's a ‘hell planet.’ Ironic, when it shines so beautifully and serenely in the twilight sky...
As Venus sets, around 9pm, look for Mars rising in the east. Nicknamed the ‘Red Planet’ of course, it actually looks more orangey-yellow than red.
Stuart Atkinson Eddington Astronomical Society of Kendal
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