Mercury and Moon, Thurs 13th May

[Size9Hex]

Looks like a nice conjunction next Thursday. Mercury at maximum elongation from the Sun, with the a slim crescent moon 3.5%, WNW, just after sunset. Close enough for a low power scope or binos, and a nice chance to locate the elusive Mercury.

Edited May 6, 2021 by Size9Hex

[Space Hopper]

......and Venus is also 'in the ballpark' albeit a bit low down.

[Stu]

Looked great here tonight. I wandered up onto the local Heath to get a clear enough horizon. First shot just with a smartphone, 2nd handheld through the binos

[PeterCPC]

Well done. Clouded out here as usual.

[skyhog]

Nice image. Clouds add to that shot, unfortunately there were just a few too many up here... 😕

[tripleped]

Saw the pairing last night by accident. Walking down driveway and low in the west beautiful crescent moon and a bright star. And I thought- could it be ? Yes! Mercury! Never have seen it before as I’ve never had low enough horizen view but it was right there in a gap between trees. No time to set up scope as it was so low but still so excited to get my first view of Mercury! Perfect clear, transparent sky. Just stared in awe for as long as I could. Naked eye viewing can be quite memorable! These are just with handheld iPhone so fuzzy but there it is anyway.  A nice surprise indeed!

[Size9Hex]

Nice to hear about a couple of successful sightings and see your photos @tripleped and @Stu. Your second photo looks very similar to the view I had through my binos Stu, including the cloud scooting through! Beautiful sight. Didn't quite recognise yours tripleped, until I realised it was a day later - nice to see how it has moved on.

I wasn't optimistic given the blanket of cloud, but it lifted at just the right moment. Really happy to got a sighting and not to have fallen onto the driveway while leaning too far out of an upstairs window to get a view. 🙂.

 

Edited May 15, 2021 by Size9Hex