Conjunction Tonight!

The Moon and the planet Mars will be in conjunction (alignment) tonight. Look for the pair to rise in the east around 4:15pm. The Moon should be obvious immediately, while Mars will become visible shortly after sunset (5:10pm). As an added bonus, M45 aka The Pleiades Star Cluster will be sitting just a few degrees to the north (left). The trio might just fit within the field of view of a pair of wide angle binoculars? Regardless, The Moon & Mars should be stunning in your lowest power, wide angle eyepieces. If skies are clear here in Park City (questionable lately), I hope to capture a picture of the event. The accompanying image was taken a few months back when the two were in a widely split conjunction… say… 4 or 5 degrees of separation. The upcoming event should be within 1 degree if memory serves correct. Hope you can get out and view the event!