Seven planets in the twilight hour (and a crescent Moon)

[Nik271]

Last evening I managed to see all the seven planets in the space of an hour, from 4:30 to 5:30pm!

I was having a late afternoon walk with my partner and we could already see the crescent Moon, Jupiter and Mars just after sunset. The western horizon was exceptionally clear and soon we could spot Venus shining brightly over the distant line of hills. I knew that Mercury is still near elongation and close to Venus, so we waited until it got darker. At 4:45pm when Venus had disappeared behind the hills, we could just about spot the faint sparkle of Mercury only 5 degrees above the horizon. By that time Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were of course prominent in the sky, together with the Moon they were plotting the line of the ecliptic for all to see.   

When we got home I took out the binoculars and we quickly bagged Neptune (conveniently near Jupiter) and Uranus (making a triangle with Sigma and Omicron Arietis) It was 5:30pm 🙂 I've seen them all before but never in one evening and so well placed, just in time for dinner!

Edited December 27, 2022 by Nik271
typos corrected

[Stu]

Excellent stuff @Nik271. Quite an achievement. Same as you, I’ve done them all in a night before, but it took four or five hours to see them all. You achieved a sort of speed dating for planets 😉

[Mr Spock]

Nicely done!

[maw lod qan]

Well done.

Remember you were looking over hills, on Earth, so you saw eight of the nine!

Yes, back in my younger days pluto was a planet, and still is in my meager mind!

[Carbon Brush]

Great report.

Yesterday I was visiting family. After dark we took a walk to a nearby street, known for its Christmas light displays.
I discussed with my 7 years old granddaughter whether the bright yellow sickle thing low down might be space banana and was corrected.
I pointed out Jupiter and (a very orange) Mars. Unfortunately a combination of cloud and buildings kept Saturn out of sight.

I had to time things right for Mars to be visible. The street had LED lighting, as often the case, intense white pools with dimmer areas away.
As I walked along the street, Mars vanished, only to reappear a few yards later when I escaped the glare.😡

[SuburbanMak]

@Nik271 - that’s a special observation, nicely done! 
 

[AstroNebulee]

Lovely report, really making my itch to get back into observing. What a special view you had. I've not managed to spot Uranus yet. 

Lee

[Captain Scarlet]

Well done. I had/have an intention to try for the same but the weather is making it unlikely. By the time it’s scheduled to improve I think Mercury will be too difficult annoyingly.

Magnus

[Kon]

Fantastic achievement! Weather has not played ball to see them all yet.