Conjunction (astronomy)
Encyclopedia
Conjunction is a term used in positional astronomy and astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...

. It means that, as seen from some place (usually the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

), two celestial bodies appear near one another in the sky. The event is also sometimes known as an appulse
Appulse
Appulse is an astronomical term that refers to the very near approach of one celestial object to another, as seen from a third body. Usually it refers to the close approach of two planets together in the sky, or of the Moon to a star or planet as the Moon follows its monthly orbit around Earth, as...

.

The astronomical and astrological symbol of conjunction is ☌ (in Unicode
Unicode
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...

 x260c) and handwritten:

Passing close

More generally, in the particular case of two planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...

s, it means that they merely have the same right ascension
Right ascension
Right ascension is the astronomical term for one of the two coordinates of a point on the celestial sphere when using the equatorial coordinate system. The other coordinate is the declination.-Explanation:...

 (and hence the same hour angle
Hour angle
In astronomy and celestial navigation, the hour angle is one of the coordinates used in the equatorial coordinate system to give the position of a point on the celestial sphere....

). This is called conjunction in right ascension. However, there is also the term conjunction in ecliptical longitude. At such conjunction both objects have the same ecliptical longitude. Conjunction in right ascension and conjunction in ecliptical longitude do not normally take place at the same time, but in most cases nearly at the same time. However, at triple conjunction
Triple conjunction
A triple conjunction is an astronomical event, where two planets or a planet and a star meet each other three times in a short period either in opposition or at the time of inferior conjunction, if an inferior planet is involved...

s, it is possible that a conjunction only in right ascension (or ecliptical length) occur. At the time of conjunction - it does not matter if in right ascension or in ecliptical longitude - the involved planets are close together upon the celestial sphere
Celestial sphere
In astronomy and navigation, the celestial sphere is an imaginary sphere of arbitrarily large radius, concentric with the Earth and rotating upon the same axis. All objects in the sky can be thought of as projected upon the celestial sphere. Projected upward from Earth's equator and poles are the...

. In the vast majority of such cases, one of the planets will appear to pass north or south of the other.

Passing closer

However, if two celestial bodies attain the same declination
Declination
In astronomy, declination is one of the two coordinates of the equatorial coordinate system, the other being either right ascension or hour angle. Declination in astronomy is comparable to geographic latitude, but projected onto the celestial sphere. Declination is measured in degrees north and...

 at the time of a conjunction in right ascension
Right ascension
Right ascension is the astronomical term for one of the two coordinates of a point on the celestial sphere when using the equatorial coordinate system. The other coordinate is the declination.-Explanation:...

 (or the same ecliptical latitude at a conjunction in ecliptical longitude), the one that is closer to the Earth will pass in front of the other. In such a case, a syzygy
Syzygy (astronomy)
In astronomy, a syzygy is a straight line configuration of three celestial bodies in a gravitational system. The word is usually used in reference to the Sun, the Earth and either the Moon or a planet, where the latter is in conjunction or opposition. Solar and lunar eclipses occur at times of...

 takes place. If one object moves into the shadow of another, the event is an eclipse
Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object is temporarily obscured, either by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer...

. For example, if the Moon passes into the shadow of Earth and disappears from view, this event is called a lunar eclipse
Lunar eclipse
A lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes behind the Earth so that the Earth blocks the Sun's rays from striking the Moon. This can occur only when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned exactly, or very closely so, with the Earth in the middle. Hence, a lunar eclipse can only occur the night of a...

. If the visible disk of the nearer object is considerably smaller than that of the farther object, the event is called a transit
Astronomical transit
The term transit or astronomical transit has three meanings in astronomy:* A transit is the astronomical event that occurs when one celestial body appears to move across the face of another celestial body, hiding a small part of it, as seen by an observer at some particular vantage point...

. When Mercury passes in front of the Sun, it is a transit of Mercury
Transit of Mercury
A transit of Mercury across the Sun takes place when the planet Mercury comes between the Sun and the Earth, and Mercury is seen as a small black dot moving across the face of the Sun....

, and when Venus passes in front of the Sun, it is a transit of Venus
Transit of Venus
A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and Earth, becoming visible against the solar disk. During a transit, Venus can be seen from Earth as a small black disk moving across the face of the Sun...

. When the nearer object appears larger than the farther one, it will completely obscure its smaller companion; this is called an occultation
Occultation
An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden by another object that passes between it and the observer. The word is used in astronomy . It can also refer to any situation wherein an object in the foreground blocks from view an object in the background...

. An example of an occultation is when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, causing the Sun to disappear either entirely or partially. This phenomenon is commonly known as a solar eclipse
Solar eclipse
As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...

 (though the term is a misnomer). Occultations in which the larger body is neither the Sun nor the Moon are very rare. More frequent, however, is an occultation of a planet by the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

. Several such events are visible every year from various places on Earth.

Position of the observer

The term conjunction primarily refers to a phenomenon defined only for the position of the observer, not just to a celestial relationship. However, e.g. for moon and sun observed from the earth, conjunction as a classifying term may apply both to the positions of conjunction (both sun and moon observed jointly in one direction or with similar ecliptical longitude) and to opposition (both sun and moon observed separately in opposite directions or with ecliptical longitude 180 degrees apart).

Superior and inferior

As seen from a planet that is superior
Inferior and superior planets
The terms "inferior planet" and "superior planet" were originally used in the geocentric cosmology of Claudius Ptolemy to differentiate as 'inferior' those planets whose epicycle remained collinear with the Earth and Sun, compared to the 'superior' planets that did not.In the 16th century, the...

, if an inferior
Inferior and superior planets
The terms "inferior planet" and "superior planet" were originally used in the geocentric cosmology of Claudius Ptolemy to differentiate as 'inferior' those planets whose epicycle remained collinear with the Earth and Sun, compared to the 'superior' planets that did not.In the 16th century, the...

 planet is on the opposite side of the Sun, it is in superior conjunction with the Sun. An inferior conjunction occurs when the two planets lie in a line
Line (mathematics)
The notion of line or straight line was introduced by the ancient mathematicians to represent straight objects with negligible width and depth. Lines are an idealization of such objects...

 on the same side of the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...

. In an inferior conjunction, the superior planet is "in opposition" to the Sun as seen from the inferior planet.

The terms "inferior conjunction" and "superior conjunction" are used in particular for the planets Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...

 and Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

, which are inferior planets
Inferior and superior planets
The terms "inferior planet" and "superior planet" were originally used in the geocentric cosmology of Claudius Ptolemy to differentiate as 'inferior' those planets whose epicycle remained collinear with the Earth and Sun, compared to the 'superior' planets that did not.In the 16th century, the...

 as seen from the Earth. However, this definition can be applied to any pair of planets, as seen from the one farther from the Sun.

A planet (or asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...

 or comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...

) is simply said to be in conjunction, when it is in conjunction with the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...

, as seen from the Earth. The Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

 is in conjunction with the Sun at New Moon
New moon
In astronomical terminology, the new moon is the lunar phase that occurs when the Moon, in its monthly orbital motion around Earth, lies between Earth and the Sun, and is therefore in conjunction with the Sun as seen from Earth...

 (or rather Dark Moon
Dark moon
A dark moon describes the Moon during that time that it is invisible against the backdrop of the Sun in the sky. The duration of a dark moon is between 1.5 and 3.5 days, depending on the orientation of the Earth and Sun....

).

"Quasi-conjunctions" are also possible; in this scenario, a planet in retrograde motion — always either Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...

 or Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

 — will "drop back" in right ascension until it almost allows another planet to overtake it, but then the former planet will resume its forward motion and thereafter appear to draw away from it again. This will occur in the morning sky, before dawn; or the reverse may happen in the evening sky after dusk, with Mercury or Venus entering retrograde motion just as it is about to overtake another planet (often Mercury and Venus are both of the planets involved, and when this situation arises they may remain in very close visual proximity for several days or even longer). The quasi-conjunction is reckoned as occurring at the time the distance in right ascension between the two planets is smallest, even though, when declination is taken into account, they may appear closer together shortly before or after this.

Notable conjunctions

2008

On 1 December 2008, Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

, Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...

, and the crescent moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

 converge in a rare conjunction to form a tight triangle in the evening after sunset, visible worldwide. It was similar to a happy "V" face, or a frowning face.

2007

A very remarkable planetary/galactic configuration occurred on 23–24 December 2007. The configuration on December 23 — Mars, Earth, Sun, Mercury, Jupiter, Galactic Centre — is shown in the graphic simulation linked below; it becomes even more remarkable in that it was accompanied by the Full Moon (conjunct Mars) at about 2 a.m. on December 24 when a simultaneous Venus square Neptune occurred. It is even more remarkable in that the Pluto/Sun conjunction appears exactly on the December Solstice, just past conjunction with the Galactic Centre.

Link below is the view from Mars toward the Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Mercury,
Pluto alignment toward the Galactic Centre on 23 December 2007 which occurs just after
the Pluto/Jupiter (Heliocentric) conjunction on 23 November 2007.
NASA Solar System Simulator for 23 December 2007

Solar System on 22 December 2007. What is not shown is Pluto (which would be to Jupiter's right) Saturn, which follows down from Venus, and Uranus and Neptune. Saturn and Neptune form the cross's t-member. It is a 23/12 configuration. There will be a full moon on 23 December 2007.

2002

In late April 2002, a rare great conjunction
Great conjunction
A Great Conjunction is a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn. The last Great Conjunction took place on May 31, 2000, while the next one will be in late December 2020. Great Conjunctions take place regularly, every 18–20 years, as a result of the combined ~12-year orbital period of Jupiter...

 occurred; in which Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...

, Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...

, Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...

, Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

 and Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...

 were all visible concomitantly in the west-northwest sky, shortly after sundown; this will happen again in early July 2060, except that on that occasion the quintet will be bunched in the east-northeast sky, shortly before dawn.

2000

In May 2000, the five brightest planets aligned within 20° of the Sun, as seen from the Earth. This could not be observed since they were too close to the Sun.

1987

On August 24, 1987, the five objects closest to Earth — the Sun, Moon, Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...

, Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

 and Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...

 — were within approximately 5° of one another, the Sun setting first, followed by Mars, Venus, Mercury and the Moon, in that order, within 20 minutes. As in the 2000 conjunction above, this event was unobservable due to the Sun being part of the line-up.

1962

During the new moon
New moon
In astronomical terminology, the new moon is the lunar phase that occurs when the Moon, in its monthly orbital motion around Earth, lies between Earth and the Sun, and is therefore in conjunction with the Sun as seen from Earth...

 and solar eclipse
Solar eclipse
As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...

 of February 4–5, 1962, an extremely rare great conjunction
Great conjunction
A Great Conjunction is a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn. The last Great Conjunction took place on May 31, 2000, while the next one will be in late December 2020. Great Conjunctions take place regularly, every 18–20 years, as a result of the combined ~12-year orbital period of Jupiter...

 of the classical planets occurred (it included all five of the naked-eye planet
Naked-eye planet
In antiquity the classical planets were the non-fixed objects visible in the sky, known to various ancient cultures. The classical planets were therefore the Sun and Moon and the five non-earth planets of our solar system closest to the sun ; all easily visible without a telescope. They are...

s plus the Sun and Moon), all of them within 16° of one another on the ecliptic
Ecliptic
The ecliptic is the plane of the earth's orbit around the sun. In more accurate terms, it is the intersection of the celestial sphere with the ecliptic plane, which is the geometric plane containing the mean orbit of the Earth around the Sun...

. At the precise moment of the new moon/solar eclipse, five celestial bodies (the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter) were clustered within 3° of each other, with the Earth in close conjunction with them. Taken in totality though, this grand conjunction included the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, with the Earth also in alignment with the Sun and Moon at the exact moment of the new moon/solar eclipse (eight celestial bodies in total).

1899

During the new moon on December 2–3, 1899, a near-grand conjunction of the classical planets and several other binocular
Binoculars
Binoculars, field glasses or binocular telescopes are a pair of identical or mirror-symmetrical telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point accurately in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes when viewing distant objects...

 bodies occurred. The Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars and Saturn were all within 15° of each other, with Venus 5° ahead of this conjunction and Jupiter 15° behind. Accompanying the classical planets in this grand conjunction were Uranus
Uranus
Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. It has the third-largest planetary radius and fourth-largest planetary mass in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus , the father of Cronus and grandfather of Zeus...

 (technically visible unaided in pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....

-free skies) Ceres and Pallas
2 Pallas
Pallas, formally designated 2 Pallas, is the second asteroid to have been discovered , and one of the largest. It is estimated to constitute 7% of the mass of the asteroid belt, and its diameter of 530–565 km is comparable to, or slightly larger than, that of 4 Vesta. It is however 20%...

.

2005

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 4, 2005 07:04:06 Venus 7°27' south of Pluto 20,8° West
January 5, 2005 00:58:49 Mercury 6°59' south of Pluto 21,6° West
January 14, 2005 00:40:51 Mercury 21' south of Venus 18.5° West
January 29, 2005 07:05:35 Mars 8°15' south of Pluto 45,5° West
February 8, 2005 01:29:22 Mercury 2°04' south of Neptune 4.2° West
February 14, 2005 19:15:10 Venus 58' south of Neptune 10.7° West
February 20, 2005 00:46:34 Mercury 1°00' south of Uranus 4.9° East
March 4, 2005 03:31:36 Venus 41' south of Uranus 6.6° West
March 28, 2005 22:31:53 Mercury 4°49' north of Venus 1.5° West
April 13, 2005 00:26:23 Mars 1°15' south of Neptune 66.0° West
May 14, 2005 20:24:10 Mars 1°11' south of Uranus 73.8° West
June 25, 2005 21:22:52 Venus 1°18' north of Saturn 22.8° East
June 26, 2005 06:13:43 Mercury 1°25' north of Saturn 22.5° East
June 27, 2005 20:18:55 Mercury 5' south of Venus 23.3° East
July 7, 2005 08:21:22 Mercury 1°38' south of Venus 25.8° East
September 2, 2005 12:05:52 Venus 1°22' south of Jupiter 38.7° East
October 6, 2005 07:01:37 Mercury 1°28' south of Jupiter 12.6° East
October 29, 2005 16:11:20 Venus 11°08' south of Pluto 46,8° East
December 31, 2005 15:55:12 Mercury 7°36' south of Pluto 14,9° West

2006

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 17, 2006 02:23:03 Mercury 7°53'south of Venus 6.5° West
February 1, 2006 12:13:51 Mercury 1°57' north of Neptune 4.5° East
February 14, 2006 15:40:57 Mercury 2' north of Uranus 14.1° East
March 26, 2006 21:02:41 Venus 1°52' north of Neptune 46.5° West
April 18, 2006 12:27:31 Venus 19' north of Uranus 45.0° West
June 17, 2006 22:50:40 Mars 35' north of Saturn 42.0° East
August 20, 2006 22:40:10 Mercury 31' north of Saturn 11.2° West
August 26, 2006 23:09:47 Venus 4' north of Saturn 16.3° West
September 15, 2006 20:32:28 Mercury 10' south of Mars 12.1° East
October 24, 2006 19:44:11 Venus 43' north of Mars 0.6° West
October 25, 2006 21:42:16 Mercury 3°56' south of Jupiter 21.2° East
October 28, 2006 16:32:15 Mercury 3°43' south of Jupiter 19.1° East
November 7, 2006 13:36:58 Mercury 1°14' south of Venus 2.8° East
November 11, 2006 17:51:38 Mercury 39' north of Mars 6.2° West
November 15, 2006 22:52:15 Venus 27' south of Jupiter 4.8° East
December 8, 2006 07:56:23 Venus 7°30' south of Pluto 10,3° East
December 9, 2006 20:17:18 Mercury 1°02' north of Mars 15.1° West
December 10, 2006 16:31:09 Mercury 8' north of Jupiter 14.8° West
December 11, 2006 23:34:02 Mars 49' south of Jupiter 15.7° West
December 25, 2006 22:36:44 Mercury 7°48' south of Pluto 15.7° West

2007

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 13, 2007 14:35:37 Mars 7°19' south of Pluto 25,4° West
January 18, 2007 18:10:50 Venus 1°25' south of Neptune 20.1° East
January 26, 2007 06:46:07 Mercury 1°28' south of Neptune 12.7° East
February 7, 2007 13:13:57 Venus 44' south of Uranus 24.6° East
March 25, 2007 07:23:59 Mars 1°00' south of Neptune 43.2° West
April 1, 2007 06:59:14 Mercury 1°37' south of Uranus 25.0° West
April 28, 2007 18:57:38 Mars 44' south of Uranus 50.6° West
July 2, 2007 00:44:38 Venus 46' south of Saturn 42.6° East
August 9, 2007 08:46:28 Venus 8°29' south of Saturn 10.6° East
August 15, 2007 22:59:23 Mercury 10°04' north of Venus 1.8° East
August 18, 2007 11:30:22 Mercury 30' north of Saturn 3.2° East
October 15, 2007 14:05:43 Venus 2°56' south of Saturn 45,8° West
December 12, 2007 04:24:10 Jupiter 6°07' south of Pluto 8,7° East
December 19, 2007 19:58:57 Mercury 7°50' south of Pluto 2,0° East
December 20, 2007 21:46:21 Mercury 1°48' south of Jupiter 1,9° East

2008

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 23, 2008 04:14:53 Mercury 20' north of Neptune 18.5° East
January 24, 2008 06:59:58 Venus 5°10' south of Pluto 33.7° West
February 1, 2008 04:14:53 Mercury 3°11' north of Neptune 9° East
February 1, 2008 12:35:21 Venus 35' north of Jupiter 32° West
February 26, 2008 02:34:04 Mercury 1°20' north of Venus 26.1° West
March 6, 2008 20:14:29 Venus 36' south of Neptune 24° West
March 9, 2008 02:48:02 Mercury 56' south of Neptune 26.2° West
March 23, 2008 10:13:50 Mercury 1°03' south of Venus 20.3° West
March 27, 2008 17:00:46 Venus 45' south of Uranus 18.6° West
June 8, 2008 00:51:42 Mercury 2°59' south of Venus 0.3° West
July 11, 2008 06:27:25 Mars 42' south of Saturn 46.2° East
August 13, 2008 19:02:26 Venus 14' south of Saturn 18° East
August 16, 2008 00:03:43 Mercury 42' south of Saturn 16.1° East
August 23, 2008 05:08:57 Mercury 1°15' south of Venus 20.5° East
September 11, 2008 04:50:56 Mercury 3°34' south of Venus 25.4° East
September 11, 2008 20:36:33 Venus 20' north of Mars 25.5° East
September 12, 2008 20:59:16 Mercury 3°26' south of Mars 25.3° East
September 19, 2008 05:13:06 Mercury 4°08' south of Mars 23.3° East
November 12, 2008 06:27:14 Venus 7°53' south of Pluto 39.4° East
December 1, 2008 00:36:13 Venus 2°02' south of Jupiter 42.7° East
December 12, 2008 18:12:39 Mercury 7°44' south of Pluto 9.6° East
December 27, 2008 01:50:46 Venus 1°45' south of Neptune 46.2° East
December 28, 2008 18:13:36 Mars 6°22' south of Pluto 6.3° West
December 31, 2008 05:54:23 Mercury 1°17' south of Jupiter 18.6° East

2009

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 18, 2009 06:19:19 Mercury 3°15' north of Jupiter 4.7° East
January 23, 2009 15:34:10 Venus 1°24' north of Uranus 46.3° East
January 26, 2009 18:23:39 Mercury 4°25' north of Mars 13.5° West
February 17, 2009 09:35:27 Mars 35' south of Jupiter 18.8° West
February 24, 2009 03:08:31 Mercury 37' north of Jupiter 24.1° West
March 1, 2009 20:21:59 Mercury 36' south of Mars 21.8° West
March 5, 2009 00:52:04 Mercury 1°39' south of Neptune 19.9° West
March 8, 2009 04:18:03 Mars 48' south of Neptune 22.9° West
March 21, 2009 21:36:59 Mercury 1°24' south of Uranus 8.3° West
March 27, 2009 11:31:44 Mercury 10°37' south of Venus 4° West
April 15, 2009 03:46:10 Mars 28' south of Uranus 30.9° West
April 18, 2009 16:22:43 Venus 5°36' north of Mars 29.8° West
May 25, 2009 14:20:29 Jupiter 24' south of Neptune 98° West
June 19, 2009 14:16:32 Venus 2°02' south of Mars 44.6° West
July 13, 2009 17:22:12 Jupiter 37' south of Neptune 145.5° West
August 18, 2009 21:20:26 Mercury 3°27' south of Saturn 25.4° East
September 20, 2009 12:26:59 Mercury 5°24' south of Saturn 3° West
October 8, 2009 09:19:27 Mercury 19' south of Saturn 17.6° West
October 13, 2009 15:39:41 Venus
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty. After the Moon, it is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows...

34' south of Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...

22.1° West
December 7, 2009 06:57:29 Mercury 7°29' south of Pluto 17.1° East
December 20, 2009 05:35:39 Jupiter 34' south of Neptune 55.6° East
December 28, 2009 04:21:10 Venus 5°24' south of Pluto 3.5° West

2010

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 5, 2010 07:30:46 Mercury 3°26' north of Venus 1.7° West
February 7, 2010 22:43:25 Venus 1°04' south of Neptune 6.6° East
February 16, 2010 21:09:36 Venus 35' south of Jupiter 8.8° East
February 27, 2010 05:07:37 Mercury 1°48' south of Neptune 11.9° West
March 3, 2010 22:43:19 Venus 40' south of Uranus 12.4° East
March 7, 2010 19:00:44 Mercury 1°11' south of Jupiter 5.7° West
March 15, 2010 17:56:56 Mercury 44' south of Uranus 1.6° East
June 6, 2010 18:30:37 Jupiter 28' south of Uranus 75.7° West
August 1, 2010 19:41:06 Mars 1°56' south of Saturn 51.5° East
August 10, 2010 01:44:26 Venus 3°8' south of Saturn 44.4° East
August 23, 2010 21:29:05 Venus 2°27' south of Mars 44.9° East
September 22, 2010 19:53:12 Jupiter 53' south of Uranus 177.8° East
September 29, 2010 06:21:23 Venus 6°30' south of Mars 33.7° East
October 8, 2010 14:57:51 Mercury 35' south of Saturn 6.5° West
October 24, 2010 11:04:41 Mercury 7°11' north of Venus 4.9° East
November 21, 2010 00:50:16 Mercury 1°41' south of Mars 18.7° East
December 13, 2010 22:03:19 Mars 5°26' south of Pluto 12.7° East
December 14, 2010 03:33:06 Mercury 1°02' north of Mars 12.7° East

2011

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 2, 2011 13:41:09 Jupiter 34' south of Uranus 75° East
January 18, 2011 02:28:33 Mercury 4°05' south of Pluto 21.9° West
February 9, 2011 23:24:13 Venus 2°20' south of Pluto 44.4° West
February 20, 2011 13:50:48 Mercury 1°04' south of Mars 3.7° West
February 20, 2011 17:08:01 Mercury 1°41' south of Neptune 3.2° West
February 20, 2011 21:28:33 Mars 38' south of Neptune 3.4° West
March 9, 2011 18:00:45 Mercury 22' north of Uranus 11.1° East
March 16, 2011 17:25:56 Mercury 2°20' north of Jupiter 15.7° West
March 27, 2011 00:37:44 Venus 9' south of Neptune 36.3° West
April 3, 2011 17:42:55 Mars 14' south of Uranus 12.4° West
April 10, 2011 20:05:01 Mercury 3°31' north of Jupiter 2.8° West
April 19, 2011 08:23:49 Mercury 47' north of Mars 15.4° West
April 22, 2011 18:50:51 Venus 55' south of Uranus 30° West
May 1, 2011 11:04:55 Mars 24' north of Jupiter 18.2° West
May 10, 2011 22:46:50 Mercury 2°12' south of Jupiter 25.3° West
May 11, 2011 09:14:56 Venus 37' south of Jupiter 25.7° West
May 20, 2011 01:17:23 Mercury 2°21' south of Mars 22.2° West
May 22, 2011 15:13:00 Venus 1°03' south of Mars 22.7° West
August 15, 2011 23:17:56 Mercury 6°21' south of Venus 1.3° West
September 30, 2011 11:07:16 Venus 1°24' south of Saturn 11.8° East
October 7, 2011 08:58:32 Mercury 1°52' south of Saturn 6.1° East
December 1, 2011 08:52:19 Venus 5°26' south of Pluto 27.2° East

2012

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 13, 2012 08:46:52 Mercury 4°34' south of Pluto 15.1° West
February 10, 2012 05:19:14 Venus 20' north of Uranus 41.3° East
February 14, 2012 00:40:40 Mercury 1°18' south of Neptune 5.5° East
March 6, 2012 23:35:54 Mercury 3°05' north of Uranus 16.7° East
March 15, 2012 10:37:46 Venus 3°16' north of Jupiter 44.6° East
March 16, 2012 02:11:51 Mercury 4°36' north of Uranus 8.2° East
April 22, 2012 02:00:45 Mercury 2°08' south of Uranus 26.3° West
May 22, 2012 07:12:01 Mercury 24' north of Jupiter 6.3° West
June 1, 2012 20:40:22 Mercury 12' north of Venus 6.7° East
August 17, 2012 08:46:15 Mars 2°54' south of Saturn 60.1° East
October 6, 2012 07:06:36 Mercury 3°29' north of Saturn 16.8° East
November 27, 2012 05:14:02 Venus 34' south of Saturn 29.0° West
November 27, 2012 11:19:37 Mars 4°33' south of Pluto 32.3° East

2013

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 6, 2013 11:38:14 Mercury 4°40' south of Pluto 7.3° West
January 16, 2013 20:45:35 Venus 3°17' south of Pluto 17.3° West
February 4, 2013 16:05:34 Mars 26' south of Neptune 16.1° East
February 6, 2013 20:41:22 Mercury 28' south of Neptune 13.9° East
February 8, 2013 21:09:19 Mercury 18' north of Mars 15.1° East
February 24, 2013 22:31:25 Mercury 4°15' north of Mars 11.6° East
February 28, 2013 08:10:56 Venus 46' south of Neptune 6.8° West
March 6, 2013 07:21:59 Mercury 5°20' north of Venus 5° West
March 22, 2013 18:23:53 Mars 1' north of Uranus 5.9° East
March 28, 2013 17:14:45 Venus 43' south of Uranus 0.7° East
April 6, 2013 15:45:52 Venus 42' south of Mars 2.6° East
April 19, 2013 21:11:39 Mercury 2°02' south of Uranus 20.3° West
May 7, 2013 22:16:22 Mercury 26' south of Mars 4.6° West
May 25, 2013 03:52:17 Mercury 1°22' north of Venus 15° West
May 27, 2013 09:47:09 Mercury 2°22' north of Jupiter 17° East
May 28, 2013 20:39:31 Venus 1° north of Jupiter 15.9° East
June 20, 2013 17:37:02 Mercury 1°57' south of Venus 22° East
July 22, 2013 05:45:11 Mars 47' north of Jupiter 23.7° West
September 20, 2013 00:14:06 Venus 3°45' south of Saturn 41.7° East
October 10, 2013 18:40:54 Mercury 5°24' north of Saturn 23.6° East
October 28, 2013 21:00:50 Mercury 4°06' north of Saturn 7.9° East
November 15, 2013 08:14:35 Venus 6°34' south of Pluto 46.3° East
November 26, 2013 03:39:41 Mercury 20' south of Saturn 17.5° West
December 31, 2013 05:39:50 Mercury 4°34' south of Pluto 2.1° East

2014

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 7, 2014 10:28:53 Mercury 6°27' south of Venus 5.9° East
March 22, 2014 11:38:46 Mercury 1°15' south of Neptune 25.7° West
April 12, 2014 08:19:49 Venus 42' north of Neptune 45.4° West
April 14, 2014 16:11:35 Mercury 1°23' south of Uranus 11.5° West
May 15, 2014 13:14:02 Venus 1°16' south of Uranus 39.9° West
August 2, 2014 16:39:29 Mercury 58' north of Jupiter 6.5° West
August 18, 2014 04:08:26 Venus 12' north of Jupiter 17.9° West
August 27, 2014 13:16:34 Mars 3°34' south of Saturn 73.6° East
October 17, 2014 08:02:46 Mercury 2°44' south of Venus 1.7° West
November 13, 2014 09:04:07 Venus 1°36' south of Saturn 4.8° East
November 26, 2014 09:01:16 Mercury 1°43' south of Saturn 6.8° West
December 20, 2014 15:07:52 Venus 3°15' south of Pluto 13.9° East
December 25, 2014 00:33:44 Mercury 4°20' south of Pluto 9.6° East
December 30, 2014 07:25:46 Mercury 3°44' south of Venus 12.6° East

2015

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 5, 2015 16:30:15 Mercury 1°40' south of Venus 16.1° East
January 19, 2015 21:33:54 Mars 14' south of Neptune 36.4° East
February 1, 2015 11:31:23 Venus 50' south of Neptune 23.8° East
February 21, 2015 19:43:28 Venus 28' south of Mars 28.4° East
March 4, 2015 19:30:15 Venus 6' north of Uranus 30.8° East
March 11, 2015 19:50:33 Mars 17' north of Uranus 24.1° East
March 17, 2015 23:40:08 Mercury 1°36' south of Neptune 19.1° West
April 8, 2015 09:55:57 Mercury 31' south of Uranus 1.8° West
April 23, 2015 07:09:00 Mercury 1°23' north of Mars 13.7° East
May 27, 2015 15:20:33 Mercury 1°41' south of Mars 4.8° East
July 1, 2015 14:17:16 Venus 24' south of Jupiter 42.2° East
July 16, 2015 04:29:03 Mercury 8' south of Mars 8.9° West
July 31, 2015 19:47:59 Venus 6°26' south of Jupiter 19.5° East
August 5, 2015 08:52:16 Mercury 8°11' north of Venus 13.1° East
August 7, 2015 04:04:09 Mercury 35' north of Jupiter 14.6° East
August 29, 2015 05:18:53 Venus 9°25' south of Mars 21.3° West
October 17, 2015 13:50:10 Mars 24' north of Jupiter 39.8° West
October 26, 2015 08:14:32 Venus 1°04' south of Jupiter 46.4° West
November 3, 2015 16:08:44 Venus 42' south of Mars 46.2° West
November 25, 2015 12:33:25 Mercury 2°46' south of Saturn 4.3° East
December 19, 2015 11:57:00 Mercury 3°51' south of Pluto 17.1° East

2016

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 9, 2016 03:57:19 Venus 5' north of Saturn 36.3° West
January 22, 2016 01:22:51 Mercury 1°47' south of Pluto 15.7° West
January 30, 2016 09:07:34 Mercury 32' north of Pluto 23.9° West
February 5, 2016 22:35:53 Venus 1°06' south of Pluto 30.3° West
March 10, 2016 22:12:11 Mercury 1°30' south of Neptune 10.9° West
March 20, 2016 13:51:16 Venus 32' south of Neptune 20.1° West
March 31, 2016 23:41:55 Mercury 38' north of Uranus 8.3° East
April 22, 2016 14:17:27 Venus 52' south of Uranus 11.7° West
May 13, 2016 20:49:07 Mercury 26' south of Venus 6.5° West
July 16, 2016 17:39:09 Mercury 32' north of Venus 10.9° East
August 25, 2016 17:52:42 Mars 4°23' south of Saturn 97° East
August 27, 2016 04:57:57 Mercury 5°16' south of Venus 22.1° East
August 27, 2016 21:47:56 Venus 4' north of Jupiter 22.3° East
October 11, 2016 04:17:47 Mercury 52' north of Jupiter 11.5° West
October 18, 2016 22:30:58 Mars 3°20' south of Pluto 78.7° East
October 30, 2016 08:25:30 Venus 3°02' south of Saturn 36.9° East
November 24, 2016 00:38:02 Mercury 3°28' south of Saturn 14.8° East
November 25, 2016 03:22:23 Venus 3°29' south of Pluto 42.1° East

2017

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 1, 2017 06:46:46 Mars 1' south of Neptune 58.7° East
January 13, 2017 01:46:45 Venus 25' north of Neptune 47° East
January 29, 2017 17:27:59 Mercury 1°11' north of Pluto 22.1° West
February 27, 2017 08:20:34 Mars 37' north of Uranus 43.1° East
March 4, 2017 05:34:17 Mercury 1°08' south of Neptune 2.2° West
March 16, 2017 23:21:32 Mercury 9°33' south of Venus 9.5° East
March 27, 2017 05:55:27 Mercury 2°25' north of Uranus 16.7° East
April 28, 2017 17:52:58 Mercury 9' south of Uranus 13.4° West
May 7, 2017 23:22:48 Mercury 2°14' south of Uranus 21.8° West
June 2, 2017 14:41:15 Venus 1°47' south of Uranus 45.2° West
June 28, 2017 18:17:30 Mercury 47' north of Mars 8.7° East
September 2, 2017 00:07:46 Mercury 4°06' south of Mars 10.8° West
September 16, 2017 18:23:28 Mercury 3' north of Mars 16.9° West
October 5, 2017 13:25:48 Venus 13' north of Mars 23.4° West
October 18, 2017 14:56:38 Mercury 1°01' south of Jupiter 6.4° East
November 13, 2017 06:10:03 Venus 17' north of Jupiter 13.8° West
November 28, 2017 09:36:06 Mercury 3°03' south of Saturn 21.1° East
December 6, 2017 11:29:41 Mercury 1°21' south of Saturn 13.9° East
December 15, 2017 16:04:48 Mercury 2°14' north of Venus 5.9° West
December 25, 2017 17:49:20 Venus 1°08' south of Saturn 3.5° West

2018

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 7, 2018 03:40:50 Mars 13' south of Jupiter 58.8° West
January 24, 2018 17:14:05 Mercury 1°33' south of Pluto 15.1° West
February 21, 2018 14:19:55 Venus 35' south of Neptune 10.5° East
February 25, 2018 10:07:00 Mercury 29' south of Neptune 6.9° East
March 5, 2018 18:28:59 Mercury 1°24' north of Venus 13.4° East
March 18, 2018 01:16:29 Mercury 3°53' north of Venus 16.4° East
March 29, 2018 0:13:21 Venus 4' south of Uranus 19° East
April 2, 2018 11:53:07 Mars 1°16' south of Saturn 93.7° West
April 26, 2018 00:01:38 Mars 1°25' south of Pluto 104.4° West
May 12, 2018 21:01:21 Mercury 2°24' south of Uranus 22.2° West
October 14, 2018 15:20:14 Mercury 6°49' north of Venus 15.8° East
October 30, 2018 03:38:40 Mercury 3°16' south of Jupiter 21.3° East
December 7, 2018 14:55:51 Mars 2' south of Neptune 88.3° East
December 21, 2018 14:43:16 Mercury 52' north of Jupiter 20.1° West

2019

Date Time UTC Planet Angle distance Planet Elongation to sun
January 13, 2019 10:48:09 Mercury 1°43' south of Saturn 10.1° West
January 18, 2019 16:22:46 Mercury 1°33' south of Pluto 7.1° West
January 22, 2019 05:47:42 Venus 2°26' north of Jupiter 45.9° West
February 13, 2019 20:06:54 Uranus 1°03' north of Neptune 64.4° East
February 18, 2019 13:54:15 Venus 1°05' north of Saturn 42.7° West
February 19, 2019 11:09:52 Mercury 46' north of Neptune 15.1° East
February 23, 2019 08:37:56 Neptune 1°25' north of Pluto 41.9° West
March 22, 2019 06:18:30 Mercury 3°24' north of Neptune 13.5° West
April 2, 2019 18:54:11 Mercury 23' north of Neptune 25.5° West
April 10, 2019 03:52:24 Venus 18' south of Neptune 32.6° West
May 8, 2019 08:12:50 Mercury 1°23' south of Uranus 14.1° West
May 18, 2019 08:12:13 Venus 1°09' south of Uranus 23.2° West
June 18, 2019 14:34:40 Mercury 14' north of Mars 24.4° East
July 7, 2019 13:33:33 Mercury 3°50' south of Mars 18.4° East
July 24, 2019 10:32:05 Mercury 5°43' south of Venus 5.8° West
August 24, 2019 12:34:05 Venus 19' north of Mars 3.1° East
September 3, 2019 10:44:25 Mercury 42' north of Mars 1.1° West
September 13, 2019 21:35:21 Mercury 20' south of Venus 8.5° East
October 30, 2019 08:29:03 Mercury 2°43' south of Venus 20.3° East
November 24, 2019 14:00:35 Venus 1°24' south of Jupiter 26.2° East
December 11, 2019 04:42:34 Venus 1°49' south of Saturn 30° East
December 13, 2019 11:36:37 Venus 1°09' south of Pluto 30.5° East

See also

  • Astrometry
    Astrometry
    Astrometry is the branch of astronomy that involves precise measurements of the positions and movements of stars and other celestial bodies. The information obtained by astrometric measurements provides information on the kinematics and physical origin of our Solar System and our Galaxy, the Milky...

  • Positional astronomy
  • Astronomical opposition
  • Elongation
  • Great conjunction
    Great conjunction
    A Great Conjunction is a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn. The last Great Conjunction took place on May 31, 2000, while the next one will be in late December 2020. Great Conjunctions take place regularly, every 18–20 years, as a result of the combined ~12-year orbital period of Jupiter...

  • Great conjunction#Greatest conjunction
  • Syzygy (astronomy)
    Syzygy (astronomy)
    In astronomy, a syzygy is a straight line configuration of three celestial bodies in a gravitational system. The word is usually used in reference to the Sun, the Earth and either the Moon or a planet, where the latter is in conjunction or opposition. Solar and lunar eclipses occur at times of...

  • Transit of Venus
    Transit of Venus
    A transit of Venus across the Sun takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and Earth, becoming visible against the solar disk. During a transit, Venus can be seen from Earth as a small black disk moving across the face of the Sun...

  • Triple conjunction
    Triple conjunction
    A triple conjunction is an astronomical event, where two planets or a planet and a star meet each other three times in a short period either in opposition or at the time of inferior conjunction, if an inferior planet is involved...

  • Astrological aspects
    • Cazimi (an extremely close conjunction involving the Sun, when a planet is conjoined with the Sun within 17 arc minutes of exactitude from the center of the solar disc)
    • Combust (a moderate to close conjunction involving the Sun and another planet, though it is not as close as Cazimi)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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