Venus and Jupiter are spectacular in the western twilight sky, as viewed from around the world. They are the sky’s two brightest starlike objects and drew together throughout June. Now they are drawing apart again, but Venus is extremely bright, brightest for this evening apparition. EarthSky friends have been capturing them in many wonderful photos, which we’ve been posting here for the past month. Enjoy, and watch for more to come!
Do you have a great photo of Venus and Jupiter? Submit it here for consideration in this gallery, or post it in the comments section below. To post in comments, just click on the comments dialog box. You’ll see an icon for posting in the lower left corner.
Jeremy Evans captured the video of the planets, below, in May 2015. The starry cluster passing by between Venus (bright object that sets first) and Jupiter (second bright object that sets second) is the Beehive star cluster in the constellation Cancer. Thank you, Jeremy!
Bottom line: Those two very bright objects in the west after sunset are Venus and Jupiter! They will draw closer throughout June, 2015.
Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. In 2020, she won the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society, the largest organization of professional astronomers in North America. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.
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