Idaho Skies Transcript for October 16th and 17th

RACHEL
Welcome to Idaho Skies for October 16th and 17th. We’re your hosts, Rachel...

PAUL
...and Paul.

RACHEL
Earth’s two closest neighbors, Mars and Venus have a rendezvous with the moon on the 17th.

PAUL
This is a morning event and perfect for stargazers who leave for work before sunrise.

RACHEL
So look in the low east at around 6:45 AM for brilliant Venus.

PAUL
Or the Morning Star as many people like to call it.

RACHEL
Above Venus will be a very thin crescent moon.

PAUL
If the horizon is hazy with smoke, you might need binoculars to see the moon.

RACHEL
Mars will be the star above the moon.

PAUL
And we mean right above the moon.

RACHEL
It appears as a yellowish-orange star to the moon’s upper right.

PAUL
The angular distance between Venus, the moon, and Mars is 7 degrees.

RACHEL
This means stargazers can see all three astronomical bodies together in most 7X50 binoculars.

PAUL
The moon will be too thin to show any craters or maria.

RACHEL
And Venus is too close to the other side of the solar system.

PAUL
That means Venus is too small and to close to the full phase to show any shape.

RACHEL
Recall that Venus is racing ahead of Earth and Earth is catching up to Mars.

PAUL
So the angular distance between Venus and Mars will increase each morning.

RACHEL
Watch them for the next few weeks and you’ll see Venus appear closer to the horizon each morning.

PAUL
And you’ll see Mars higher and higher above the horizon.

RACHEL
That’s Idaho Skies for the 16th and 17th of October.

PAUL
Be sure to read our blog for additional information. It’s at idahoskies.blogspot.com

For Idaho Skies this is Paul...

RACHEL
...and Rachel.

PAUL
Dark skies and bright stars.