Jupiter closest to sun on November 1-2 before opposition

Jupiter at perihelion in 2023

Have you noticed a very bright object ascending in the east earlier each evening? That’s the planet Jupiter and it’s brighter than all the stars!

Jupiter’s perihelion – or closest point to the sun – comes overnight tonight, November 1-2, 2023, when the distance between the sun and Jupiter will be 462 million miles (744 million km). And the distance between the Earth and Jupiter will be 370 million miles (595 million km).

Then, Jupiter will reach opposition on November 2-3, 2023, at 5 UTC (12 a.m. CDT) bringing Jupiter opposite the sun in our sky. That happens as Earth flies between the sun and Jupiter.

Jupiter’s last opposition – when Earth in its orbit flew between Jupiter and the sun, placing the giant planet opposite the sun in our sky – happened on September 26, 2022. Then Jupiter was closer to Earth than it had been in 70 years. For the September 26, 2022, opposition, Jupiter was 367 million miles (591 million km) from Earth.

And it was the close conjunction in time between Jupiter’s yearly opposition – and its once-in-12-years perihelion – that gave us the close approach of Jupiter in September, 2022.

A closer look at orbits

Earth and Jupiter go around the sun on almost the same plane. Jupiter’s orbit takes 11.9 Earth-years. And Earth’s orbit takes one year.

Both Earth and Jupiter have orbits that are very nearly circular. If the orbits were exactly circular, with the sun in the center of the circle, both Earth and Jupiter would always stay at the exact same distance from the sun.

But the orbits of both Earth and Jupiter are very slightly elliptical, (like a squashed circle). So Jupiter’s distance from the sun varies, and it has a nearest point to the sun and – half a dozen Earth-years later – a farthest point from the sun.

Earth’s perihelion – or closest point to the sun – occurs every year around January 4. We’re farthest from the sun every year in early July.

Jupiter perihelion doesn’t happen so regularly, with respect to our earthly calendar. It falls on different dates across an earthly year, every 12 years.

Jupiter last passed aphelion – its farthest point from the sun – on February 18, 2017. Jupiter’s next aphelion will come in 2028.

Since 2017, Jupiter has been moving closer to the sun – bit by bit, closer and closer – every earthly day.

Then it was closest point to the sun, in 2022, and moving further away until 2028.

2022 Geocentric ephemeris for Jupiter

2023 Geocentric ephemeris for Jupiter

2024 Geocentric ephemeris for Jupiter

2022 Geocentric ephemeris for sun

2023 Geocentric ephemeris for sun

2024 Geocentric ephemeris for sun

Bottom line: Jupiter’s perihelion or closest point to the sun in 2023 comes overnight November 1-2, 2023. The distance between the sun and Jupiter on November 1, 2023, will be 462 million miles (744 million km).