Mars/Venus/Jupiter dazzle N. California skies this week

[emad]

Mars beams; Venus, Jupiter rendezvous
3 neighbors go out of their way to dazzle sky watchers
David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor

Three planets are putting on a brilliant double feature in the skies over Northern California this week as Mars, Venus and Jupiter move into unusual positions overhead.

At midnight tonight, wherever fog hasn't blotted out the rest of the visible universe, Mars will appear brighter than any star in the sky. Bay Area residents can find it shining beneath a gibbous moon -- the nearly full moon that has just begun to wane -- long after Venus and Jupiter have set below the western horizon.

On most nights, Venus and Jupiter are the brightest of all planets in the solar system, but their star status is not being completely eclipsed by Mars. As it turns out, they're putting on a show of their own, giving the impression that they're drawing closer and closer together, and by next Thursday, they will look to earthbound observers as if they're almost kissing, astronomers say.

The unusual sights are due to the orbits of the planets in their regular procession around the sun. But even the ordinary can offer rewards to anyone willing to look upward, said Andrew Fraknoi, chairman of the astronomy department at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/08/24/MNGHIEC6Q21.DTL&hw=Mars&sn=001&sc=1000

[Desertrose]

1. I think we will actually have clear skies tonite....

(missed the Perseids due to clouds- happens every year darn it)

Looks good for star gazing tonite...N Az has some of the best night skies.