Sunday, April 12, 2015

Venus Visits the Pleiades

Venus and the Pleiades (c) John Ashley
Evening clouds frame Venus and the Pleiades


After the sun and moon, planet Venus is our third-brightest sky spectacle. This week Venus makes a close flyby to a favorite constellation, the Pleiades, passing about 2.5 degrees away in last night's evening sky. The Pleiades is also known as the Seven Sisters in many cultures, as M45 to astronomers, and as the six brothers of Miohpoisiks, or the Bunched Stars, in local Blackfoot culture.