Is this Venus or Jupiter?

[Walky]

I took these photos today thinking that the brightest star in the sky had to be Venus, but after seeing what seems a moon I wonder. I live in Florida and was looking NW. I know  Venus does not have a moon. Could it be a star beyond Venus? I don't think I could see a moon of Jupiter with my  camera, which is my other explanation... I was using a 18-70 lens on a T2i @ 70mm.

So I leave it to your kindness to help me identify what I photographed tonight. That should be no problem for you guys! It's been a year since I look at the sky, so my total  confusion. 

[nightfisher]

That is THE moon in the pic you have posted, maybe you posted the wrong picture

[Walky]

That is THE moon in the pic you have posted, maybe you posted the wrong picture

The moon is my identifier or avatar. I posted a file that is on PNG format, I think it is not compatible with the site. CAnnot find how to edit the entry! The thing is, the planet has another dot close to it, so it cannot be Venus, I think.

[Walky]

I took these photos today thinking that the brightest star in the sky had to be Venus, but after seeing what seems a moon I wonder. I live in Florida and was looking NW. I know  Venus does not have a moon. Could it be a star beyond Venus? I don't think I could see a moon of Jupiter with my  camera, which is my other explanation... I was using a 18-70 lens on a T2i @ 70mm.

So I leave it to your kindness to help me identify what I photographed tonight. That should be no problem for you guys! It's been a year since I look at the sky, so my total  confusion. 

[dweller25]

Download Stellarium - it's free

[Gomtuu]

It's Venus. The bright star at bottom centre is Shaula, on the tail of Scorpio.

I have no idea what the bright spot by Venus is though. There's no star currently in that position that I know of. Could be a camera artifact.

As David says, download Stellarium.

[leader of the starry skys]

yes download stellerium it will show you everything in the sky, even the space station if you add the satellite app, its a must you look forward to see whats showing weeks later 

[steve_w]

You could have maybe used a longer lens and got more definition, just to help clarify things?

[Walky]

You could have maybe used a longer lens and got more definition, just to help clarify things?

Here is the thing. The lens is f/2.8, though it is 18-70, so it provides quite a good resolution. I think 70mm is quite good for that unless you want only one spot on a dark sky, which I was trying to avoid  by using only 70mm. IMO, they look better with a few stars around.

 

Anyway....  I am uploading the biggest size that I have from yesternight (?)  so you can enlarge them 100%  if you wish. I can use a max of 280 tonight using a Canon L f/4 lens. I don't like this one for astrophotography  because of the F/4, but will do. Also have a 75-300 that can go 420 with extender (can do well, too). I will experiment, though I am sure NOW that is Jupiter, not Venus. 

 

 

#1: Point and Shoot version; lack of resolution shows it as a single dot

#2: A prior shot taken 10_15_2013 of what I thought was Venus

#3: Actual shot real size taken 10_29_2013 last night with f/2.8 70mm (18-70 Sigma( lens & Canon T2i.(the one in discussion)

They may not be in this order,,,

[Walky]

Apparently, the bigger file (one in the middle) gets   re-sized when uploaded so it looses its resolution. Let's try this again.

[Avocette]

Hi Walky,

I had a quick read through of your posts but don't think you mentioned when precisely you were taking these shots. There are some easy ways of distinguishing between Venus and Jupiter due to their positions in the sky at the present. You will see Venus in the evening sky for a while after sunset and Jupiter in the morning sky before the sun rises. The other give away is that Venus is only half illuminated by the Sun so it looks like a small, intensely bright half circle. I get a feeling of this (non-circular nature) with some of your posted photos.

[Stu]

As Gomtuu says, it is Venus.

The star pattern matches the one in this screenshot, with the brighter star being Shaula.

One shot also shows what I assume is the setting sun. Jupiter would not appear that close to it at the moment, it is in a different part of the sky.

So, definitely Venus. The dot by the side must be a reflection in your lens.

Stu

[Walky]

As Gomtuu says, it is Venus.The star pattern matches the one in this screenshot, with the brighter star being Shaula.One shot also shows what I assume is the setting sun. Jupiter would not appear that close to it at the moment, it is in a different part of the sky.So, definitely Venus. The dot by the side must be a reflection in your lens.ImageUploadedByTapatalk1383158051.924083.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1383158063.057482.jpgStu

They were taken at evening, roughly around 7PM ET in Orlando, Florida. I am not that much into AP as to wake up early in the morning for photos.

[Stu]

They were taken at evening, roughly around 7PM ET in Orlando, Florida. I am not that much into AP as to wake up early in the morning for photos.

Yes, that would make sense for Venus

Stu

[Walky]

 I failed to say I was shooting through a window and probably that spec of light  was indeed a reflection. No spec appeared tonight when I shot outside. No mosquitoes! Hurrah!  

Here they are:

http://stargazerslounge.com/gallery/album/2814-venus-october-30-2013/

[Stu]

That would explain it :-)

Nice shots, you can certainly see the near half phase coming though in the more zoomed in shots

Stu

[Walky]

Thank you for the follow up, I was really worried about the identity of my "Venus" Now to wait for better wide views of the night sky.

[TenBears]

If it was the evening, definitely Venus.  Venus is kind of hard to miss.  It is twice as bright as ANYTHING else in the sky (moon aside).