The moon is now sweeping past the planet Venus in the eastern predawn sky. They are close both on the mornings of March 27 and March 28, 2014. Steve Scanlon Photography captured this wonderful shot of the pair a year ago, when Venus was still receding from Earth after the spectacular Venus transit of June 5-6, 2012. In early 2013, Venus was still dropping lower in the dawn twilight. It went on to have a wonderful apparition in our evening sky for much of 2013. And now it is visible before dawn again.
This month, Venus is very bright and easy to see in the east before the sun comes up. Check it out on the mornings of March 27 or 28!
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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