Smiley in the Sky

The last two nights in our neighbourhood have been enlivened by clear skies and the presence of a crescent moon, Venus and Jupiter. On Monday night it was a smiley face and last night it was an upside down sad face.

The moon is the brightest, closest and smallest of the three and is 252,000 miles away. Venus, the second brightest, closest and smallest, is 94 million miles away, while Jupiter is 540 million miles away.

The three celestial objects come together from time to time, but often they are too close to the sun or unite at a time when they are less visible.

The next time the three will be as close and visible as this week will be Nov 18, 2052, according to Jack Horkheimer, director of the Miami Space Transit Planetarium.

I tried to take a picture, but my lame camera did not support my efforts to document the event. Still it was fun to see.

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