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Celestial Object Near Venus on July 12 2012

-- | July 15, 2012

Question: At about 5:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time on July 12, 2012, at elevation ~10,000′ (near Mammoth Lakes, CA), with an unaided eye I observed what appeared to be a star or planet a barely discernible distance below and to the left of Venus. (My eyes had recently been checked; acuity is 20/15). Was this a real phenomenon or did I fool myself? Thanks. — George

Answer: First of all, Venus was pretty bright that night at about magnitude -4.4. The planet Jupiter, much dimmer at magnitude -1.9, was about 6 degrees away, above Venus. About 1.5 degrees to the right (toward the south) and just a little bit above Venus was the bright star Aldebaran, at magnitude +0.9. If the object you saw very near Venus was in fact above and to the right rather than below and to the left of Venus, then I suspect that you were seeing Aldebaran.

Jeff Mangum

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