Tonight is the Last Night They Will Form a Sort of Bent Line
Throughout this year, our southern skies have been treated to a stunning display of Mars, Saturn, and the star Antares. It was May when they finally crept into out evening skies, rising above the southeastern horizon and swinging across the ecliptic as a triangle-shaped group. The threesome formed virtually the same recognizable shape throughout the summer, rising a little earlier each night and working their way westward as the months passed. Over the last couple weeks, though, we watched as their triangle grew narrower and narrower. Finally, on the nights of August 23 and 24, it metamorphasized into a straight(ish) line as Mars passed between Antares and Saturn.
Tonight—August 25, 2016—is the last night they will be form a sort of bent line. After that, we’ll get to see the triangle re-form as Mars pulls eastward, away from its long-time buddies. Don’t miss it!
How do you see this lovely event? Simple. Just look southwest sometime between dusk and 10:00 PM. As long as the sky is clear, you won’t miss it. Saturn will appear as a brilliant, golden world, forming topmost object in the bent line. Mars will be the reddish object in the middle, and Antares will be the dimmest of the three, flickering closest to the horizon.
There’s a couple cool things to keep in mind as you gaze at this lovely trio. Although they all look close together on our sky’s dome, the distances to these objects varies greatly. Mars is the closest to Earth, being a mere 7 light-minutes away (that’s about 79 million miles). Saturn is currently 82 light-minutes, or 914 million miles, from Earth. But Antares—the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius—is a staggering 550 light-years away.
Read more by Katharina on her page Sky Watcher
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