When May wrapped up, Mars and Jupiter were enjoying a close conjunction that climaxed on May 29th with the two planets a touch more than one Moon diameter apart. The gap between them has been growing ever since, and as June begins they remain eye-catchingly close. This morning, slightly less than 2° separates Mars from Jupiter. There's quite a brightness mismatch, however. Jupiter gleams brilliantly at magnitude -2.3 while Mars is +0.7 - respectably bright, but still some 16 times fainter than Big Jove. This morning's pairing is part of a wonderful dawn planet parade that lasts all month.
展开▼
