The month of September started with the majestic Perseid meteor shower on Sep 9-10, which displayed bright meteors radiating from distant at a speed of 100 meteors per hour at its peak. But in case you missed it, there are some other upcoming astronomical events to watch out for.
The planet Venus will be very close to Earth and hence, appear as a big, bright, shining orb from our vantage point. The distance between Earth and this planet will be around 0.442 astronomical units, which converts to 66.06 million kilometres.
On this date, Earth will be positioned directly on opposite sides of the Sun and Neptune, making the 8th planet visible to us. With the help of binoculars and a telescope, the blue circles of this distant planet can be seen clearly.
Day and night will be of equal duration on this day and it will present an opportunity to the stargazers in the northern hemisphere to catch the bright planet of Mercury in the morning sky.
On this date, you will be able to witness the bright waxing gibbous moon near the planet Saturn. Astronomy enthusiasts can view the moon, which will resemble a bright disco ball, and spot a tiny orangish-yellow dot of Saturn in its upper left corner.
After the rare blue moon of 30 August, September draws to a close with a Supermoon, which also happens to be the last this year. The full moon reaches the closest point in the Earth’s orbit called perigee on September 29. This full moon appears in the constellation of Pisces.