No one has for the last 794 years.
So, the Great Conjunction on Monday, Dec. 21 is worth braving the cold for an outside peek at the cosmos.
People are using the term Christmas star, and are making Star of Bethlehem comparisons to this late-December winter solstice pairing of Jupiter and Saturn. How close they get to each other is usually far enough apart to easily distinguish each planet with the naked eye, said Frank Marzano of the Beaver County Amateur Astronomers. That will not be the case this year. The two will appear as one planet for almost everyone. A very rare occurrence, which has not occurred since the year 1623, he added. But when that occurred, both were very close to the sun so no one could notice. So go back to the year 1226 for as close a conjunction that is also able to be seen in some dark sky.
No one has for the last 794 years.
So, the Great Conjunction on Monday, Dec. 21 is worth braving the cold for an outside peek at the cosmos.
People are using the term Christmas star, and are making Star of Bethlehem comparisons to this late-December winter solstice pairing of Jupiter and Saturn. How close they get to each other is usually far enough apart to easily distinguish each planet with the naked eye, said Frank Marzano of the Beaver County Amateur Astronomers. That will not be the case this year. The two will appear as one planet for almost everyone. A very rare occurrence, which has not occurred since the year 1623, he added. But when that occurred, both were very close to the sun so no one could notice. So go back to the year 1226 for as close a conjunction that is also able to be seen in some dark sky.