{"id":42646,"date":"2023-03-23T09:52:45","date_gmt":"2023-03-23T09:52:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=42646"},"modified":"2023-03-23T10:14:32","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T10:14:32","slug":"the-planets-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/2023\/03\/23\/the-planets-19\/","title":{"rendered":"The planets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our <\/span>celestial neighbourhood in April<\/span><\/p>\n\n

PICK OF THE <\/strong>MONTH<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Mercury <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Best time to see:<\/strong> 11 April, 45 minutes after sunset
Altitude:<\/strong> 10\u00b0
Location:<\/strong> Aries
Direction: <\/strong>Northwest
Features:<\/strong> Phase, subtle surface markings
Recommended equipment:<\/strong> 150mm or larger<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Mercury will be visible in the evening sky, appearing brightest at the start of the month <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Mercury is an evening object this month and at the beginning of April appears bright and well-separated from the Sun. This makes April a great month to try to see this elusive world. At the start of April, Mercury is reasonably bright at around mag. \u20131.1, but it dims rapidly thereafter. By 11 April, now shining at mag. +0.2, it reaches its greatest evening altitude at sunset. On this date, it sets a fraction over two hours after the Sun, which is great news if you\u2019re planning to look for it. <\/p>\n\n

On 21 April, Mercury\u2019s dimming will have reduced it to a much trickier mag. +2.3, but it should still be possible to see it as long as you allow the evening twilight sky to darken sufficiently. A slender 3%-lit waxing crescent Moon sits 6.4\u00b0 to the west of Mercury on this date. The dim planet Uranus will also be close, separated from Mercury by 3.8\u00b0 but tricky to see against the twilight bright sky. Mercury thereafter closes in on the Sun fairly rapidly and will be lost from view at the end of April, with inferior conjunction occuring on 1 May.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\"\"
The planet\u2019s apparent size increases throughout April <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Looking at Mercury through a telescope will show the planet\u2019s phase. On 1 April, it appears tiny at 5 arcseconds across and presents a 77%-lit gibbous disc. <\/span>As the month progresses, its apparent size increases in step with a decrease in phase. On 15 April, for example, Mercury now appears 8 arcseconds across and presents a phase of 26%. Trying to observe it in the evening or morning twilight will subject it to lots of atmospheric turbulence that makes seeing the planet\u2019s phase that much harder.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

\n\n

Venus <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Best time to see: <\/strong>30 April, from 1 hour after sunset<\/span>
Altitude:<\/strong> 24\u00ba
Location: <\/strong>Taurus
Direction: <\/strong>West-northwest<\/p>\n\n

The magnificent evening appearance of Venus continues this month as the planet gets further from the Sun, heading towards greatest eastern elongation, its greatest separation from the Sun, on 4 June. On 10 April, mag. \u20133.9 Venus is just 2.7\u00b0 south of the beautiful Pleiades open cluster. The sky gets astronomically dark around 22:00 BST (21:00 UT) when the pair are around 16\u00b0 above the west-northwest horizon. This means there\u2019s a good opportunity for a stunning photograph. <\/p>\n\n

The rapidly expanding spring evening twilight takes some of the shine off Venus during the latter part of April, but as the mag. \u20134.0 planet passes through Taurus at the end of the month, it is joined by a gloriously thin waxing crescent Moon on the evenings of 22 and 23 April. On 30 April, 3\u00b0 south of Elnath (Beta (\u03b2) Tauri), Venus sets 4 hours and 15 minutes after the Sun. Through the eyepiece of a telescope, Venus appears 66%-lit and 16 arcminutes across at the end of April. <\/p>\n\n

Mars <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Best time to see: <\/strong>1 April, from 21:45 BST (20:45 UT)<\/span>
Altitude:<\/strong> 47\u00ba
Location: <\/strong>Gemini
Direction: <\/strong>West-southwest<\/p>\n\n

Shining at mag. +1.0, Mars is an evening planet, and a shadow of how it appeared around opposition at the end of 2022 and the start of 2023. Through the eyepiece of a telescope, it appears 11 arcseconds smaller than it did at its peak apparent size at the start of December 2022 \u2013 it is now just 6 arcseconds across. This means that it is tricky to see much in the way of detail. On the evening of 14 April, now at mag. +1.2, the planet sits just 9 arcminutes from mag. +3.0 Mebsuta (Epsilon (\u03b5) Geminorum). At the end of April, Mars remains in Gemini, shining at mag. +1.3 and appearing 5 arcseconds across through the eyepiece. <\/p>\n\n

Jupiter <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Not visible this month
Jupiter is in conjunction with the Sun on 11 April and won\u2019t be visible all month. <\/p>\n\n

Saturn <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Not visible this month
Saturn is poorly placed in the morning sky and unlikely to be seen this month. <\/p>\n\n

Uranus <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Best time to see: <\/strong>1 April, from 21:30 BST (20:30 UT)<\/span>
Altitude:<\/strong> 13\u00ba
Location: <\/strong>Aries
Direction: <\/strong>West<\/p>\n\n

Uranus is too low to observe properly as astronomical darkness falls. On 1 April, the planet is just 11\u00b0 above the western horizon as true darkness arrives, but after the first week in April, Uranus is almost at the horizon by the time the sky is properly dark. The planet is located 4\u00b0 from mag. +1.8 Mercury on the evening of 19 April, the faint mag. +5.8 Uranus being a struggle to see against the bright twilight sky. <\/p>\n\n

Neptune <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n

Not visible this month
Neptune is a morning object and will be lost in the dawn twilight in April. <\/p>\n\n

<\/div>
\n

More ONLINE
<\/strong>Print out observing forms for recording planetary events
www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/bonus-content\/9BN84GZ<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

The planets in April <\/h4>\n\n

The phase and relative sizes of the planets this month. Each planet is shown with south at the top, to show its orientation through a telescope <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n

JUPITER\u2019S MOONS: <\/strong>APRIL <\/h4>\n\n

Using a small scope you can spot Jupiter\u2019s biggest moons. Their positions change dramatically over the month, as shown on the diagram. The line by each date represents 01:00 BST (00:00 UT). <\/p>\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n

PHOTOS: PETE LAWRENCE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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