Venus is going, going …

Steven Bellavia wrote: “October 21, 2018 crescent Venus – 5 days before the planet’s inferior conjunction, when it will go between the Earth and sun – at 1.6 percent illumination. At inferior conjunction, on October 26, Venus will be 0.6 percent illuminated.” If it’s between us and the sun, why won’t its night side be entirely facing us? It’s because, at this inferior conjunction, Venus isn’t passing directly in front of the sun, as it did in 2012 when we saw a Venus transit. Instead, it’ll pass to one side of the sun in our sky so that very skilled observers might be able to record a very slim crescent Venus at the moment of inferior conjunction! Thanks, Steven!


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