Venus and Jupiter will dramatically pass each other in the night sky on the same day that the annual Perseid meteor shower peaks. The conjunction between the two brightest planets will take place in the east in the pre-dawn sky, with the Perseids due to peak overnight on Aug. 12/13.
Venus and Jupiter will appear very close together, separated by just 0.9 degrees, or less than the width of two full moons.
Venus and Jupiter are the two brightest planets in the night sky. Venus will shine at magnitude -4.0 and Jupiter at -1.9, both in the constellation Gemini.
The two planets will rise in the east-northeast about 2.5 hours before sunrise and be easily visible to the naked eye until dawn. They'll make a striking pair through binoculars, particularly Jupiter, whose four Galilean moons — Ganymede, Europa, Io and Callisto — will be visible.
The Perseid meteor shower will peak overnight on Aug. 12/13, but its up to 75 “shooting stars” per hour sometimes seen on the peak night will this year likely be greatly reduced.
To catch the planetary conjunction, start early — about an hour before sunrise on Tuesday, Aug. 12 — and look to the east-northeast horizon for the close encounter between Venus and Jupiter. Find a location with an unobstructed eastern horizon.
Later, on Aug. 12, after sunset, turn your gaze to the northeast once again for the constellation Perseus, the radiant point of the Perseids, which will be rising as darkness falls. Give your eyes 20 minutes to adjust to the dark and avoid looking at a phone, whose bright white light will instantly kill your night vision. While the moonlight may obscure fainter meteors, there will likely be occasional bright “shooting stars.” Come back after dark on Friday, Aug. 15, when the moon will rise much later, with the darker skies potentially showing lingering Perseid meteors.
Although the conjunction and the Perseids will get the headlines, there's also a “planet parade” going on, visible one hour before sunrise. As you look for Venus and Jupiter, you may notice Mercury rising into the pre-dawn sky below. Also, notice Saturn in the southern sky. Uranus and Neptune are also in the sky, but it's not possible to see them with the naked eye.
Although it's visible right now, this parade — mistakenly called a planetary alignment by many — will be best seen between Sunday, Aug. 17, and Wednesday, Aug. 20, when a waning crescent moon moves past them each morning, getting slimmer each day. The highlight will be on Tuesday, Aug. 20, when a 9% crescent moon will be positioned very close to Venus.