Brilliant Venus and Mercury Put on a Sky Show Just After Sunset - Venus and The Pleiades Conjunction

When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look west. Venus and Mercury are shining through the twilight just above the horizon. Venus is brilliant and unmistakable; Mercury is dimmer and lower, but rising and brightening every night as it approaches greatest elongation from the sun on April 11th. The scene will improve every evening over the next week. You have a rare chance to spot Mercury in the evening sky in April. From now through mid-April, in the western evening twilight sky, the brilliant planet Venus, will help you to identify the normally hard-to-find planet Mercury. And along the way, Venus will have a striking interaction with The Seven Sisters, the Pleiades star cluster. On April 10th, Venus will be in conjunction with the Pleiades and Mercury will be well above the horizon. Venus will make its closest pass relative to the Seven Sisters, coming within 2.5 degrees of this beautiful cluster. Clear Skies Everyone!