One of the best times to view Mercury is now
Mercury is an elusive planet that is very challenging to see because of its proximity to the Sun
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Did you know that you can see Mercury from Earth and it’s in our evening sky right now?
Mercury is an elusive planet that is very challenging to see because of its proximity to the Sun. It becomes easier to see when it’s at it’s greatest elongation, and that occurs Monday. Elongation refers to the angular separation between the Sun and a planet as seen from Earth. Greatest elongation means this is the farthest the planet will be from the Sun. In Mercury’s case, this happens several times a year since it’s orbit is a very short 88 days.
The planet alternates between the evening and morning sky. Because it follows the Sun so closely, it is never far above the horizon. This week, Mercury will be 25 degrees from the sun in our sky.
Believe it or not, Mercury is visible to the unaided eye. It’s just always so low on the horizon, and often gets lost in the glow of the Sun or even glow of city lights. A small telescope would enable finer features to be seen such as phases. Just be careful to wait about a half hour to an hour after sunset.
Never look for Mercury while the Sun is still above the horizon.
