If you look west-southwest on Feb 16 at 6:25 PM, you can spot the 2.5 day old moon It will be 22° above the bright planet of Venus and you will also see Jupiter at 0.5° north of Venus.
However, the window of opportunity to see this magic grouping closes fast. The trio will go below the horizon within 15 minutes.
You can also see Jupiter above Venus looking west-south-west on Valentine’s day between 6:15 and 6:30 PM.
After the Moon, Venus is the brightest natural object in the night sky. It is impressive for the brilliance and purity of its light. At this time of year, Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly after sunset, so it is often referred to as the Evening Star.
The planet is the second-closest to the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days.
It's yellow-brown coloured surface and bright yellow hazy curtain of a sky contribute to its bright appearance. It has broiling surface conditions with temperatures exceeding the melting point of lead. The surface rock is 460 degrees C.
Venus is similar in size, gravity, and bulk composition to the Earth.
It is covered with an opaque layer of highly reflective clouds of sulfuric acid, preventing its surface from being seen from space in visible light. It has the densest atmosphere of all the terrestrial planets and consists mostly of carbon dioxide. The atmospheric pressure at the planet's surface is 92 times that of the Earth.
The fact that there are few impact craters indicate that Venus relatively young at approximately half a billion years old.
The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love, beauty, art, sociability, femininity, gentleness, co-operation and originality. Through love, we forgive, support and feel joyful.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Katharine Auslander is a freelance journalist and a resident of Meaford who is very interested in astronomy and environmental issues. She has a Masters degree in Environmental Studies from York University.
