February will be an exciting month for amateur astronomers, with some lovely viewings of planets including Venus, Mercury, and more. The month starts of with a show from the most massive planet in the solar system.
Jupiter will be at its closest approach to the Earth on February 6, at which time the full face of the largest world in our family of planets will be illuminated by light from the Sun. Details in the atmosphere of this planet are easily observed using a small backyard telescope. This opposition of planets is the best time to photograph Jupiter. The four largest moons of the giant globe can easily be seen, in even modest instruments.
"Earth passes more or less between the sun and Jupiter, placing Jupiter opposite the sun in our sky," EarthSky.org reports.
Venus is already the brightest planet in the nighttime sky, and the cloud-covered globe will glow in a dazzling light, beginning just after Valentine's Day. This world, long associated with love, has a surface temperature averaging 864 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough the melt lead.
A new moon on February 18 offers amateur astronomers their best chance to observe some of the most beautiful objects in the Universe.
"The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This is the best time of the month to observe faint objects such as galaxies and star clusters because there is no moonlight to interfere," Sea and Sky reports in its Astronomy Reference Guide.
Venus and Mars are the two closest planets to our own home world, and the two bodies will appear close together in the sky during the evenings of February 21 and 22. The two planets will be visible in the western sky, just after sunset, separated by about half a degree, the diameter of a full moon. Venus is easily visible from its brilliant display of light, and Mars can be recognized from its distinctive red color.
Comet Lovejoy will continue to be visible in the nighttime sky, visible just to the left of the constellation Cassiopeia, shaped like the letter W.
Mercury will finish out the month, providing astronomers with the best possible opportunity to view the minuscule world. One of the greatest challenges with observing this rocky world is its close proximity to the Sun. This planet is usually so close to our solar companion, that it becomes lost in the glare, as seen from Earth. However, on February 24, Mercury will reach its greatest angular distance, or elongation, away from the Sun. It will be visible about 15 degrees above the eastern horizon, an hour before sunrise.
The Snow Moon occurred on February 3. That full moon was traditionally associated, by some Native American cultures, with the heaviest snows of the year, and was sometimes known as the full hunger moon.
