Photos: This week’s moon and planets after sunset!

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Godfrey Pool in Colchester, UK, captured the waxing moon, Venus, Saturn and Jupiter on December 6, 2021. He wrote: “… a 9% crescent moon this evening. Taken in my back garden as the clouds cleared for a short while.” Thank you, Godfrey!

The moon is just starting to move up the line of bright planets in the evening sky now. Have you seen ’em? You can’t miss them if you look outside after sunset. You’ll find the planets in the sunset direction, shortly after the sun goes down. They follow the ecliptic, or sun’s path across the sky. And two (Venus and Jupiter) are brighter than any stars. And now the young moon has returned to the evening sky. Watch for the moon to wax larger each day, as it passes Venus (brightest, nearest sunset point), then Saturn (faintest of the three planets, middle) and then Jupiter (2nd-brightest, highest in sky after sunset). See the chart below, and enjoy these photos from the EarthSky community!

The moon will be passing the bright planets in the evening sky from about December 6 to 9, 2021. Read more.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Steve Price in Draper, Utah caught the planets and moon very shortly after sunset on December 5, 2021. Fabulous catch, Steve! Thanks for sharing.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Greg Hogan in Kathleen, Georgia contributed this cool image of the December 5, 2021 young moon. He wrote: “… the crescent moon was setting just over the rooftop of my house, and in the shot is also the Christmas lights along the rooftop, which give a reflective inside look into the optics of my telescope.” Beautiful, Greg. Thank you.

Bottom line: The bright planets Venus, Saturn and Jupiter are aligned in the sky after sunset now. The moon is sweeping through from about December 5 to 9, 2021. Photos from the EarthSky Community here.

The post Photos: This week’s moon and planets after sunset! first appeared on EarthSky.