Watch Venus and Mercury This Week (and Imagine Messenger Flying By Venus)

In the coming evenings, sky watchers can acquaint themselves with the MESSENGER spacecraft mission to Mercury. Late afternoon on Tuesday, June 5, 2007, MESSENGER will fly within about 210 miles (340 kilometers) of the surface of the planet Venus, and get a gravity kick toward its ultimate destination, the sun-baked planet Mercury.


Image above: MESSENGER prepares to perform the Mercury orbit insertion burn. Credit: NASA/JHUAPL



Image above: As the MESSENGER spacecraft approaches the brightly illuminated Venus on June 5, 2007, it will begin a carefully planned sequence of science observations that are designed to practice activities planned seven months later at the first flyby of Mercury. This animation shows the approximate spacecraft orientation with Venus in the background from one hour before closest approach to one hour after the 330 to 340 kilometer altitude closest approach.

Both Venus and Mercury will be well-placed for viewing during dusk the week before MESSENGER's encounter with Venus. Go to a location away from bright lights with a good view of the western and northwestern horizon. Venus is the brilliant "evening star" fairly high above the western horizon. Forty-five minutes after sunset (or between 8:45 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. Daylight Time, depending on your location within your time zone), you should start to see other bright stars and planets as the sky darkens.