Eric: Spot 5 different planets through August Eric: Spot 5 different planets through August - WSFA.com Montgomery Alabama news. HOME Ne...
Eric: Spot 5 different planets through August - WSFA.com Montgomery Alabama news.
- HOME
- News and Weather Apps
- Umbrella Giveaway
- Write it Down!
- Editorials
- News
- Decision 2018
- Crimestoppers
- Alabama Headlines
- Education
- Consumer
- National
- International
- Food
- Business News
- Science Stories
- HEALTH
- WEATHER
- Interactive Radar
- Weather blog
- News and Weather Apps
- WSFA Weather Cameras
- What is a 'First Alert Weather Day'?
- First Alert Doppler Radar
- 10 Day & 48 Hourly Personal forecast
- Personal Forecast Emails
- WSFA 12 News radio p artners
- Sketch the Sky Winners
- Download: Severe weather guide
- Montgomery Regional Airport - Air Traffic Map
- SPORTS
- Alabama
- Auburn
- Friday Night Football Fever
- Alabama Sports Headlines
- National Sports
- Montgomery Biscuits Baseball
- SEC Coverage
- Regional College Sports
- VIDEO
- Weather Video
- County Road 12 Video
- Does it Work video
- Right This Minute Video Coverage
- Most Popular Videos
- Sports Video
- Local
- Alabama Live and 12 Talk
- Class Act
- County Road 12
- Families of the Year Awards Nominations
- Defenders
- Pump Patrol - Find low gas prices!
- Slideshows
- SLIDESHOW: CrimeStoppers
- SLIDESHOW: Best Places to Live 2018
- SLIDESHOW: Arrested in May
- SLIDESHOW: Arrested in June
- SLIDESHOW: Arrested in July
- TV
- Find Bounce TV (12.2) on cable
- Closed captioning on WSFA
- How to receive WSFA 12 News via satellite
- Receiving WSFA 12 News over an antenna
- What's on NBC
- ABOUT US
- Meet the News Team
- WSFA Jobs
- EEO Public File
- WSFA Public File
Eric: Spot 5 different planets through August
Evening planet parade (Source: WSFA 12 News) MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - The next few weeks will offer sky watchers an opportunity to see five planets with the naked eye. You just need to know where, and when, to look.
Step outside this evening just as the sun has set and the sky begins to darken. Looking west, let the slender crescent moon be your guide to the first two planets. Bright Venus is just to the right of the moon with bright Jupiter to the left. Both stand out in the evening sky.
A good rule for judging the difference between a planet and star: stars twinkle while planets don't. This effect is the result of distance. Stars are farther away and the pinpoint light passing through our atmosphere is forced to change direction. The end result is the familiar shimmer we see in the night sky. Planets are closer, appearing as disks as opposed to a pinpoint of light. Planets shine steadier and the light is more constant. This is a great rule of thumb for telling the difference between a planet and star in a pinch. It's not always 100 percent full-proof, but it will get you by.
Once you've located Venus and Jupiter, turn toward the south. Mars sticks out for it's orange glow with Saturn to the right appearing slightly dimmer. So where is the 5th planet? Look down. It's Earth. You can't miss it. The show remains on display, although aligned slightly different each night through the month of August.
Get out and enjoy!
Copyright 2018 WSFA 12 News. All rights reserved.
  |
No comments