Venus, Jupiter Putting on Historic Show in Western Sky

Step out the front door and find an unobstructed view of the western horizon and you might be able to witness an historic conjunction of planets high above St. Michael and Albertville.

The conjunction–or joint appearance of two celestial bodies in the night sky–is Jupiter and Venus. Two distinctly different planets (one consists of primarily rock and dust, the other gas), and one great view.

According to NASA.gov:

"In late March 2012, Venus and Jupiter will be in conjunction in the western skies, drawing closer to each other to create a beautiful visual duet for a few hours each evening.

This will be the best Venus-Jupiter conjunction for years to come. While bright to the unaided eye, they're even better when seen through a telescope."

The two planets were at their brightest last Thursday, but will continue to appear and are still quite bright. In fact, they appear to be moving closer together as March proceeds.

If you're really into this sort of thing, NASA scientist Melissa McGrath will be hosting a "live chat" on the website Sunday, March 25 to discuss the conjunction.

Feel free to share your photos of the conjunction, which actually happens quite frequently (about every 13 months) but won't happen at this brightness again for "many years," NASA states.