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<div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Awesome stuff, Nick! Boy, your videos really give a sense of the winds we've all been fighting this year! They have been just relentless, and frankly not very inspiring when it comes to deciding whether to get out there and do some observing. Hopefully March lives up to the old saying, "in like a lion, out like a lamb."</div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br></div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false">Mike M.</div><div dir="ltr" data-setdir="false"><br></div><div><br></div>
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On Sunday, March 23, 2025 at 03:32:44 PM EDT, Taboo Groundhog <bubflush@gmail.com> wrote:
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<div><div id="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808"><div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr">On Friday at sunset at Webb State Park I tried my luck at getting a view of Venus, with strong gusts of winds adding to the challenge. After safely waiting for the sun to dip below the horizon line I raced to find the bright dot above it. I had less than half an hour to find Venus before it too sunk below the horizon line. Having roughly pointed the scope at the horizon I looked through the finder scope expecting an arduous search, but to my amazement it was already there. Feeling rather smug I centered it in the crosshairs and it looked, well, quite distorted. The atmosphere works in strange ways.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"><div><div style="width: 386px; min-height: 20px; background-color: rgb(245, 245, 245); margin: 6px 0px; padding: 10px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Google Sans, sans-serif; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221);" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_chip ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_drive_chip"><a shape="rect" href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1D-YksOpfc-DO-g-AF_QJ6QOY2QAEib44" style="color: rgb(32, 33, 36); display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; text-decoration: none; border: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img style="vertical-align:text-bottom;border:none;padding-right:10px;min-height:20px;" alt="" src="https://drive-thirdparty.googleusercontent.com/32/type/video/mp4" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"> <span dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:bottom;">False Venus.mp4</span></a></div></div><div><br clear="none"></div><div>Also my polar alignment must not have been so good since it was constantly moving out of frame. I tried turning off tracking and yet it still kept moving out of frame. "Must've been the wind". I go to switch out for a wider field of view and when I get back... it's gone. It's at this point I realize whatever I was looking at couldn't be Venus, because Venus should be 10 degrees to the right. In hindsight I'm pretty confident it was contrails from a plane, but the similar angular size and vague crescent shape certainly fooled me for a while.<br clear="none"><br clear="none">After repositioning to the correct spot and searching a little while I did finally come across Venus, barely pushing through the dense atmosphere. As it set it had a lucky conjunction with some objects on Earth. </div><div><br clear="none"><div style="width: 386px; min-height: 20px; background-color: rgb(245, 245, 245); margin: 6px 0px; padding: 10px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Google Sans, sans-serif; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221);" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_chip ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_drive_chip"><a shape="rect" href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1uzSDJbYnd_XziaAg-guuwGFsVT5peg2n" style="color: rgb(32, 33, 36); display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; text-decoration: none; border: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img style="vertical-align:text-bottom;border:none;padding-right:10px;min-height:20px;" alt="" src="https://drive-thirdparty.googleusercontent.com/32/type/video/mp4" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"> <span dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:bottom;">Venus and Plane and Newton.mp4</span></a></div><br clear="none"></div><div>The radio tower in Newton was 15 miles away. The plane in the background, assuming it was at cruising altitude, would put it at around 160 miles away, past the border of Massachusetts and close to Albany New York. Ironically despite this being Venus' "close approach" it is still by far the furthest object in frame. </div><div><br clear="none"></div><div>Finally Venus set on the low horizon, with its last glimpse being visible while it was only 15 arc minutes or 0.25 degrees above the horizon. However, because of the light bending properties of the atmosphere, if you could've seen Venus at the time without the atmosphere getting in the way it would actually have already set and been 15 arc minutes <i>below </i>the horizon. </div><div><br clear="none"><div style="width: 386px; min-height: 20px; background-color: rgb(245, 245, 245); margin: 6px 0px; padding: 10px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Google Sans, sans-serif; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221);" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_chip ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_drive_chip"><a shape="rect" href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1bsEzFMxba3Fm_uCJ2lk3Zw3SYjdlTrkB" style="color: rgb(32, 33, 36); display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; text-decoration: none; border: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img style="vertical-align:text-bottom;border:none;padding-right:10px;min-height:20px;" alt="" src="https://drive-thirdparty.googleusercontent.com/32/type/video/mp4" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"> <span dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:bottom;">Venus 15 arcmin Set.mp4</span></a></div><br clear="none"></div><div><br clear="none"></div><div>Lastly, this morning I was at Hingham beach over-ambitiously looking for Saturn's lack of rings, which I did not find. While I was there though I did get one last view of Venus starting its new days as the morning star.</div><div><br clear="none"><div style="width: 386px; min-height: 20px; background-color: rgb(245, 245, 245); margin: 6px 0px; padding: 10px; color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; font-family: Google Sans, sans-serif; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221);" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_chip ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_drive_chip"><a shape="rect" href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=1nWI-eZD9ugt5dEbwYRrKd6Wh32sC4qQa" style="color: rgb(32, 33, 36); display: inline-block; white-space: nowrap; text-decoration: none; border: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img style="vertical-align:text-bottom;border:none;padding-right:10px;min-height:20px;" alt="" src="https://drive-thirdparty.googleusercontent.com/32/type/video/mp4" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"> <span dir="ltr" style="vertical-align:bottom;">Venus 6am.mp4</span></a></div><br clear="none"></div><div><br clear="none"></div><div>- Nick F</div><div><br clear="none"></div></div><br clear="none"><div id="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808yqt81813" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808yqt0664029008"><div class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_quote ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_quote_container"><div dir="ltr" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_attr">On Sun, Mar 23, 2025 at 1:17\u202fPM Mike McCabe <<a shape="rect" href="mailto:cartech2000@yahoo.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cartech2000@yahoo.com</a>> wrote:<br clear="none"></div><blockquote style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex;" class="ydpaaa912ebyiv8924747808gmail_quote"><div><div style="font-family:Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;font-size:16px;"><div dir="ltr">...astronomy event that is, with new and exciting ones coming in hot on its heels. The Venus inferior conjunction that a few of us have been blathering excitedly about recently has passed, and in its place is a possible aurora in our skies this evening (specifically from 8pm onward) and a partial solar eclipse at sunrise this coming Saturday morning.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr">Did anyone get to see anything with Venus closest to its inferior conjunction yesterday? I tried, but was soon pushed back by the exceedingly bright conditions in the eyepiece. The insistent thin cloud cover during the day yesterday caused an extreme brightening in the area right around the Sun, and when I aimed my scope at where Venus would be I never even got close to the eyepiece. So bright was the situation that I could see the danger of it from a distance - there was no sense in going there.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:mv518PLeK5hLKCZ0cJ9I" style="max-width:800px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><i>It's actually somewhat rare to be able to see Venus at exact inferior conjunction in the sky, mainly because it's technically the moment when the Sun and the planet are aligned in ecliptic longitude. It typically lasts about two seconds. But that's OK, because like it is with most conjunctions, the overall situation doesn't look terribly different for many hours on either side of the exact moment.</i><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr">In the image above I've highlighted the parameters that are important to us when these events happen.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>1) Magnitude:</b> Venus is incredible in that even at the tiniest silvers of illumination it maintains its exceptionally bright status. Its maximum brightness is around minus 4.9m, where its minimum is around minus 2.9m, which happens when the planet is farthest from us and on the other side of the Sun, a situation known as <i>superior conjunction</i>. You can see that at this inferior conjunction it was at minus 4.2m. That, is amazing!</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>2) AZ/ALT:</b> As already mentioned, the planet may be well below the horizon at exact inferior conjunction, but roughly the same conditions will remain in place for several hours before and after 0° ecliptic elongation. That's good, because it's always during the daytime that we have to look for it during inferior conjunction.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>3) Elongation:</b> The apparent distance from the planet to the Sun in our sky, expressed in degrees of an arc. This basically guides those of us trying to view or image planet as it gets close to the Sun. The closest I've personally worked with is 7.8°, and at that point I was using a blocking device to shield the telescope optics from the Sun's light. The closer it is the harder and more dangerous it is to acquire observations of it, but there are rewards for the effort, like seeing something that a very small percentage of people will ever get to see in their lifetime. I mean how many people have personally seen the pyramids of ancient Egypt? I'll tell you; millions and millions, or even billions more than have ever seen a tiny crescent Venus. So there!</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:Vi4wYVVqtEp6DpcxqpSR" style="max-width:790px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><span></span><i>It gets dicey working close to the Sun, and considering the potential consequences of a mishap we need to be sure to take measures to prevent one. This cardboard contraption was about to make its third appearance on that scope yesterday, but the sky conditions couldn't be overcome.</i></div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>4) Elongation in Ecliptic Longitude:</b> Important only for telling us the exact moment of alignment. The things important to us in the recreational observation business, like solar elongation, illumination and apparent diameter are not significantly different for the 24hr. period straddling this exact moment.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:31QmCaiUAE1Ia1nrjVda" style="max-width:800px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><span></span><i>Only one time have I been able to view Venus at the exact moment of inferior conjunction, and it was while I was attending the Stellafane Convention in 2015. Of course as with all things astronomy, luck with the weather plays a huge factor in our successes or failures in our observations</i>.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>5) Illuminated: </b>Indicates the percentage of the disc of the planet that is illuminated by the Sun. To me, seeing a 1% crescent Venus in the eyepiece is a stunning experience, but maybe I'm just odd. I'll just leave that right there.</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><b>6) Apparent Diameter:</b> The size of the planet as seen in our sky, usually expressed in seconds of an arc. No other planet shows a larger angular diameter, or a wider range of apparent diameters than Venus. She can appear to us as small as under 10" to as large as 66", depending on our respective orbits/apogees/perigees, etc. </div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:n9dP2RTa8uFpsXivMyHS" style="max-width:800px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><span></span><i>The next inferior conjunction of Venus, happening in October of 2026, will feature a slightly closer (6.5°), slightly larger (61") and slightly slimmer crescent (.6%) than most of our recent ones that have been visible to us. This should be a fun one. I hope it's clear. :-)</i></div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr"><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:6zgjMnyWUbrq5t698dXx" style="max-width:800px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><i>And finally, every 8 years Venus comes super-close to the Sun at inferior conjunction (and even occasionally crosses the disc of the Sun in an event known as a transit...mark your calendars...the next one is coming in 92 years in 2117, then again eight years later in 2125). These close passes allow imagers to capture a phenomena known as the "Ring of Fire", where Venus' atmosphere becomes back-lit by the Sun and the planet appears to glow as a tiny circle in the sky.</i></div><div dir="ltr"><i><br clear="none"></i></div><div dir="ltr"><i><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:8l4rtJp7DjWQX0GAguux" style="max-width:800px;width:100%;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"><br clear="none"><span></span>The last "Ring of Fire" event happened back in 2020, when Venus passed just .5° from the Sun in our sky. A few intrepid imagers captured the phenomena, but it must be known that this is a highly specialized process that few people are equipped for. This is not child's play, and there is no possibility of a visual experience under these conditions. I don't even think about taking a scope out for this.</i></div><div dir="ltr"><i><br clear="none"></i></div><div dir="ltr">So there you have it, everything you ever wanted to know about a Venus inferior conjunction event, and I'm sure 100% more than most of you even knew you wanted. But I enjoy this kind of research, as it helps me to prepare for upcoming events and to know what to expect. I'll file it somewhere, then forget about it and eventually engage in a frustrating search for it years down the road...thinking to myself, "but I know I have that somewhere." <img title="Emoji" alt="Emoji" height="16" src="https://s.yimg.com/nq/yemoji_assets/latest/yemoji_assets/1f923.png" width="16" style="padding:0px 2px;vertical-align:middle;" data-inlineimagemanipulating="true"></div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr">Happy Spring!</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr">Sincerely,</div><div dir="ltr"><br clear="none"></div><div dir="ltr">Mike M.</div></div></div></blockquote></div></div></div>
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