المملكة: Jeddah Astronomy: The conjunction of Venus, Uranus, and the Pleiades paints a rare celestial picture

Head The bright planet Venuswith the distant planet Uranus, next to the Pleiades cluster, in a scene that appears within the constellation Taurus, as a celestial painting that collects objects that vary greatly in brightness and distance.

He indicated that the planet Venus will emerge as an extremely bright point on the western horizon, which will make it an easy visual guide to determine the location of faint Uranus, in addition to the Pleiades cluster, which gives the scene a distinctive stellar sparkle, Pointing out that this type of scene attracts the attention of observers and amateurs alike.

Approach of Uranus

He pointed out that astronomical estimates show Uranus approaching Venus at an angular interval of approximately one degree this evening, with a slight difference according to geographical location, while The Pleiades Clusteris at a distance ranging between 3 to 4 degrees, which makes observing the three objects within one field of view possible using astronomical telescopes.

He added that the best time for viewing begins about 75 to 90 minutes after sunset, towards the western horizon to the northwest, where the cluster is low above the horizon at a height ranging between approximately 10 to 15 degrees, which requires choosing a suitable observing site that has an open horizon and free of Obstacles.

Observing Uranus

He explained that Venus can be easily spotted with the naked eye as the brightest object in the sky after the sun and the moon, while observing Uranus requires the use of binoculars or a telescope, as it appears as a dim point similar to a star with the possibility of observing its color tending to green in good astronomical devices. The telescope also allows following the phase of Venus, which will be gibbous with an illumination ranging from 85 to 90%.

He pointed out that the low location of this cluster and its proximity to the glare of the western horizon may make seeing the Pleiades cluster difficult in some locations, especially in the presence of atmospheric dust or thin clouds, which means that the observer with the naked eye may notice Venus as a single bright object without clear accompaniment, while the quality of viewing improves significantly using binoculars.

A pivotal role

He stressed that The clarity of the atmosphere and the absence of pollutants and obstacles on the horizon play a pivotal role in the success of monitoring, indicating that the presence of the Moon in the first square phase will not constitute a major obstacle, despite the possibility of its slight impact on contrast.

He explained that this event represents an important educational and visual opportunity to understand the differences between celestial bodies, as it brings together a close and very bright planet such as Venus, a distant and dim planet such as Uranus, and a star cluster located at a distance of about 440 light-years, like the Pleiades, which highlights the contrast between the components of the solar system and distant stars.

Sky Maps

He advised using sky map applications such as Stellarium to accurately determine the locations of objects, especially since Uranus may be confused by the observer with nearby stars within the same visual field.

He concluded that this alignment remains an optical phenomenon resulting from the locations of objects in their orbits and not an actual convergence. In space, it provides a rare opportunity to see the diversity of the sky’s components in one scene that combines the brightest planets and the most distant star clusters within one visual frame.

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