Dec 9 - Venus and Saturn, New Zealand Volcano

December 9 Venus and Saturn New Zealand Volcano by:

Saturn is as bright as the sky's brightest stars. But Venus is more than 60 times brighter! Look in the sunset direction. Read more. For your specific view, from anywhere on the globe, try Stellarium.

This week … Watch for Venus and Saturn Maybe you saw bright Jupiter near even-brighter Venus in the west after sunset in late November? The Venus-Saturn conjunction happens this week. It won't be as dramatic, but it'll still be very cool. Start watching tonight, as soon as the sky begins to darken. Venus will pop into view first … very bright! Saturn will be the fainter light nearby. Read more. What we're reading   From Associated Press … 5 dead, many more missing in eruption of New Zealand volcano Today's volcano took place on White Island - about 30 miles (50 km) offshore from mainland New Zealand. It began at 2:11 p.m. local time. The volcano erupted in a tower of ash and steam while dozens of tourists were exploring its moon-like surface. At this writing, 5 people have been reported killed, and many more are missing. Police told AP that the site was still too dangerous hours later for rescuers to search for the missing. Read more. New Zealand volcano is on the Pacific Ring of Fire Here's more information about New Zealand's White Island volcano in the context of the Pacific Ring of Fire: background on the volcano and why these volcanoes erupt. Read more.

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Before sunup … Watch for Mars and Zubenelgenubi On Tuesday morning, you'll find Mars just above Zubenelgenubi, one of the constellation Libra's brightest stars. The star name rhymes with Obi-Wan Kenobi of "Star Wars." Mars and this star will fit in a single binocular field this week. On Thursday, they'll pass within only 1/5th of one degree from each other. For reference, the width of your little finger at arm's length spans about one degree of sky. Read more.

New Zealand volcano is on the Pacific Ring of Fire Around 50 people – mostly tourists – were on New Zealand's White Island when the volcano erupted on Monday afternoon, local time. Many remain unaccounted for at this writing. Image via NewsHubNewZealand. Submit your photo to EarthSky here! Did a friend forward EarthSkyNews to you? Click here to get your own subscription!

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