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In Search of Mythical Moons: Closest Planetary Conjunction in 2013 Happens This Weekend
The planet Mercury as seen by NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft (Credit: NASA/JPL).
The history of astronomy is littered with astronomical objects in the solar system that have fallen to the wayside. These include fleeting sightings of Venusian moons, inter-mercurial planets, and even secondary moons of the Earth.
While none of these observations ever amounted to true discoveries, this weekend gives observers and astrophotographers a unique chance to “mimic” a spurious discovery that has dotted astronomical lore: a visual “pseudo-moon” for the planet Mercury. This “moon illusion” will occur on February 8, 2013 during the closest conjunction of two naked eye planets in 2013. February offers a chance to see the fleeting Mercury in the sky, and a conjunction with Mars will provide the opportunity to see how Mercury would look in the night sky if it had a moon!
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Read the rest of In Search of Mythical Moons: Closest Planetary Conjunction in 2013 Happens This Weekend (906 words)
© David Dickinson for Universe Today, 2013. |
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Post tags: astronomy 2013, February astronomy, Mariner 10, mercury mars conjunction, Mercury MESSENGER, mercury moon
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2013-02-06 16:01:26
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