As afternoon turns to evening, while blue sky deepens to twilight, planet Venus, the Evening Star, is the first and brightest “star” to appear beginning at about 4:40 p.m., following in the path of the setting Sun. The Evening Star appears mid-sky above the south-southwest horizon in valley locations and close above the hills in mountainous terrain. Venus (about -4.15 magnitude) sets close to 7 p.m. tonight and minutes later every evening into December. I enjoy marking day’s end, beginning of nighttime, with a glance to the dazzling white Evening Star low in the south-southwest.
A word about planet Mercury (0.24m): Locate Mercury on the Solar System Model and know that Mercury is below Venus in our sky tonight, November 23, likely too close to the horizon to be seen with the naked eye. The closest planet to the Sun in our solar system, Mercury sets at about 5:30 p.m. today and earlier, closer to the Sun, each successive day. Curious about the Sun? Linger with the Sun here.
Planet Jupiter (-2.79m) rises in the east-northeast, opposite Venus on the horizon, at about 5:15 p.m. today and a few minutes earlier every successive evening. Find Jupiter—bright but not as bright as the goddess planet—above the hills by 5:30 p.m. Notice Jupiter traveling the sky all night in the company of winter constellations Taurus the Bull, Orion the Hunter, and Sirius the Dog. Jupiter sets in the west-northwest at 7:49 a.m.
The middle planet on the imagined string, Saturn (0.97m), appears yellowish. The ringed planet is nearly as bright as the brightest star in the early evening sky, Vega, located at the top of the Summer Triangle in the diagram below. Saturn sets in the west-southwest close to midnight at the end of November and at 11:20 p.m. by December 6. The moon is below Saturn on December 7.
This map identifies a selection of celestial objects visible in the early evening sky in late November into early December. Look for named planets, outstanding stars, and constellations. The purple arc represents the Milky Way. Trace the string of planets from Jupiter, left; down to Saturn, middle; and Venus, far right. During these longest nights of the year, we might explore our solar system and the cosmos with young people through resources developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
