>On The *EVENT HORIZON* - Venus & Jupiter Dance!<

On The *EVENT HORIZON* - Venus & Jupiter Dance!

Enjoy a close encounter of the planetary kind, as Jupiter and Venus
are in conjunction on the mornings of November 4th & 5th. Less than
one degree apart, the two brightest planets will dominate our pre-dawn
sky.

The time to see this celestial wonder is in the wee hours of the
morning, between 5 and 6 am. Even though Jupiter is by far the larger
of the two planets, Venus will be the brighter of the pair. Venus is
much closer to the Earth, and with its highly reflective clouds and
orbit nearer the Sun, our "Morning Star" outshines her dance partner.

And, as a special treat, watch carefully for Mars reappearing just
before the dawn's early light! The Earth has been overtaking the
slower-orbiting Mars on the interplanetary racetrack. Mars will
slowly rise higher and higher in our sky, until we reach opposition
next summer. Do you recall when Mars was at opposition during the
summer of 2003, when it was closer to us than it has been in the past
60,000 years? 2005's opposition will be nearly as good! (And, on a
personal note, I will have a MUCH bigger telescope this time around!
MORE POWER!!)

To see the latest steps in the Dance of the Planets, find a viewing
spot that has a clear view of the eastern horizon. Dress warm, and
keep your fingers crossed hoping for clear skies! NASA has skycharts
to help you find our neighbor worlds:
-November 4th: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2...th_04nov04.gif
-November 5th: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2...th_05nov04.gif

Enjoy the show!

On The *HORIZON* - Luna Occults Jupiter!

*****
May you have clear skies & a star to steer by! ¤Michael¤

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¤MICHAEL FOERSTER¤
¤The Starry-Nite Society ~ Research Lead
¤NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab ~ Solar System Ambassador
¤NASA's Night Sky Network ~ Project Manager(Starry-Nite)
¤Project ASTRO / Polaris ~ Mission Specialist
¤E-Address: Skywatch@(insert domain from next line).net
¤Domain: Starry-Nite.net
¤N42°31'13.3" ¤ W83°08'43.2" ¤ 668' ¤ -5 GMT
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FAMOUS LAST WORDS - A SERIES
"Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?"
H.M. Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927
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