Astrometry

Astronomical Winter Starts with Rare Celestial Phenomenon

Today at 12.02 pm the astronomical winter arrives and the winter solstice. With the winter solstice comes the longest night in the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest day in the southern part of the world.

Shortly after 6 pm, it will be possible to observe the conjunction of the two largest planets in the solar system, Jupiter and Saturn.

Jupiter, Saturn to form double planet on Dec 21

In a once in 20 years occurrence, Jupiter and Saturn will appear very close together in the night sky on Dec. 21.

The two gas giants will actually be hundreds of millions of miles apart but will appear exceptionally close, just a tenth of a degree apart or one-fifth of a full moon's diameter, according to Live Science.

Mercury transit visible from Greece on Monday

People in Greece will be able to witness a rare celestial show on Monday as Mercury passes between the sun and Earth, a phenomenon that is not expected to occur again until 2032.
The transit of Mercury is expected to be spotted in Greece shortly after 2.30 p.m. and will last for around five hours, according to experts.