BRILLIANTLY BRIGHT PLANET VENUS APPEARING CLOSE BY TO THE RINGED PLANET SATURN TONIGHT! - 18/01/2025
This evening, a special celestial event that will be of great interest to stargazers will be taking place. Tonight (18/01/25) Venus will appear to pay a close visit to the amazing ringed planet Saturn.
This special meeting between Venus and Saturn will be an excellent opportunity to observe two of the most eye-catching planets in our solar system and will make a for a beautiful post-sunset scene as well as a great photographic opportunity.
This special meeting of planets will also be conveniently timed in the early evening, making it a great chance to share an astronomical experience with the whole family.
HOW CLOSE WILL VENUS AND SATURN BE?
On the 18th of January 2025, Venus and Saturn will appear to be separated by only 2.2 degrees in our early evening skies. Although the two planets will appear very close together from our perspective here on Earth, Venus and Saturn are currently separated by a distance of around 875 million miles!
WHERE AND WHEN TO LOOK
Look towards the South-West just after sunset for a chance to view this close encounter. The pair of luminaries will be found together in the constellation of Aquarius, following the Sun's path towards the horizon. Venus will be very easy to spot appearing like a super bright star-like point of light, shining at an impressive magnitude of -4.61! Although not as bright as Venus, Saturn will still be quite easy to spot nearby to Venus. Both Saturn and Venus will descend travelling towards the West where they will set at roughly 20:42 and 20:49 respectively.
THE PLANETARY PARADE
As well as Venus and Saturn, throughout January and February will be a great time to observe all the other planets in our solar system. On the evenings throughout January you may be able to observe 6 of the 7 planets at the same time and in late February will be an opportunity to view all 7! This special opportunity to view multiple planets at once is being called the “Planetary Parade”.
If you would like to learn more about the “Planetary Parade” of early 2025 please read our post on the parade here: https://astro-dog.co.uk/blogs/astronomical-news/the-planetary-parade-january-february-2025
OTHER CELESTIAL TREATS TO LOOK OUT FOR
There are many other celestial treats in our night skies at this moment in time, here is a small selection of amazing night sky sights to look out for:
- Look to the South and you may be able to view all the dazzling winter constellations including the distinct constellation Orion, plus the large asterism known as the “Winter Circle”.
- The beautiful open star cluster the Pleiades (aka the Seven Sisters) can be found in the zodiacal constellation of Taurus the bull.
- The winter Milky Way in all its glory can be seen stretching all the way across the sky and it's certainly something to look out for at this time of year, especially when the moon is not brightening our skies.
- The amazing Andromeda Galaxy can be spotted to the eye as a small faint elliptical fuzzy in the constellation of Andromeda.
- We are still in the Aurora season and the Northern Lights may be seen dancing on our Northern horizons on nights of strong auroral activity.
WHAT ELSE IS IN THE NIGHT SKY THROUGHOUT JANUARY?
If you would like to know more about the rest of the celestial treats that can be seen throughout January, please head to our YouTube channel to watch our Night Sky Guide video for January 2025.
https://youtu.be/vgNoB-eUyJc?si=mttCCsy4OcZSzMhr
VIEW THE PLANETS WITH US AT ONE OF OUR STARGAZING EVENTS!
We are holding many Astro Dog stargazing experience events throughout the months of January and February. If you wish to take a closer look at some of the planets with the help of our large aperture telescopes, why not join us at our cozy stargazing hub under the beautifully dark skies of Dalby Forest for a magical night of learning and gazing at the heavens? You can find more information about our events and make a booking by visiting our website at www.astro-dog.co.uk
CLOSING WORDS FROM ASTRO DOG
The conjunction between Venus and Saturn will be an excellent chance to observe our neighbours in the Solar System and if you can, we recommend taking this opportunity to head out and do a little planet gazing!
Clear skies! 💖