somecanadianskeptic
Venus, Mar 3, 2009
Venus, f/0, 1/100 sec exposure, ISO-100. Venus is terribly bright right now, at magnitude -3.90, despite very little of it being illuminated (for you smart asses out there who are about to point out that half of Venus is always illuminated, I'm well aware of this, so don't bother). Venus has the highest light-reflectivity (called "Albedo") of all the planets because it's covered with thick, white clouds that reflect nearly all the light back into space. If you have a pair of good binoculars or even a modest backyard scope, go out just after sunset and point your gear (not THAT gear, Mr Filthy-pants) to that bright-as-bejeezus "star" in the west...you'll probably be able to see Venus as a thin-crescent. You're running out of time though, by the end of the month Venus will be too low on the horizon and washed out by the sunlight.
Venus, Mar 3, 2009
Venus, f/0, 1/100 sec exposure, ISO-100. Venus is terribly bright right now, at magnitude -3.90, despite very little of it being illuminated (for you smart asses out there who are about to point out that half of Venus is always illuminated, I'm well aware of this, so don't bother). Venus has the highest light-reflectivity (called "Albedo") of all the planets because it's covered with thick, white clouds that reflect nearly all the light back into space. If you have a pair of good binoculars or even a modest backyard scope, go out just after sunset and point your gear (not THAT gear, Mr Filthy-pants) to that bright-as-bejeezus "star" in the west...you'll probably be able to see Venus as a thin-crescent. You're running out of time though, by the end of the month Venus will be too low on the horizon and washed out by the sunlight.