On the evening of March 2, the ＂brightest＂ two stars in the night sky embraced romantically.

　　Poster production: Feng Juan

　　Xinhua News Agency, Tianjin, February 28th (Reporter Zhou Runjian) The "brightest" two stars in the night sky — — What is the visual feeling of Venus and Jupiter’s "romantic embrace"? Here comes the opportunity. On the evening of March 2, these two bright celestial bodies will meet at close range in the western sky and perform "Stars attract each other".

　　Dai Jianfeng, an astronomy enthusiast in Chongqing, accompanied Jin Mu in Namco, Tibet on the evening of July 5, 2015. (Photo courtesy of myself)

　　Astronomical science experts said that this is the most wonderful planetary conjunction this year, and it is also one of the astronomical phenomena worth watching this year. Because the two stars are very bright, there is no need to use an astronomical telescope, and you can enjoy this wonderful scene with the naked eye.

　　Wang Junfeng, an astronomy enthusiast in Beijing, shot the golden wood in Fangshan, Beijing in the early morning of May 1, 2022. (Photo courtesy of myself)

　　Most of the time, if the sun and the moon are not counted, Venus and Jupiter rank first and second respectively among the stars visible to the naked eye. During the period from the end of February to the beginning of March this year, in the western sky in the evening, Venus, the closest to the earth, and Jupiter, the "big man" of the solar system, are gradually "approaching" and meet at 19: 00 on March 2. Visually, they are the closest. This is another close contact between the two planets after Venus and Jupiter were very close in the early morning of May 1, 2022.

　　Jin Mu’s companion moon was photographed by Guangdong astronomy enthusiast Shen Quanzhi in Lianhua Mountain, Panyu, Guangzhou on the evening of February 22, 2023. (Photo courtesy of myself)

　　Yang Jian, an astronomy enthusiast in Tianjin, accompanied Jin Mu in Nankai, Tianjin on the evening of February 25th, 2023. (Photo courtesy of myself)

　　Xiu Lipeng, a member of the Chinese Astronomical Society and an expert in astronomical science, said that the astronomical phenomenon of Venus and Jupiter at close range is not uncommon, and it has occurred almost every year in recent years. Although the frequency of occurrence is high, it is not always suitable for public observation in China. This is because when they coincide, they are sometimes too close to the sun, sometimes occur in the daytime or early morning, and sometimes "fall" in the southern hemisphere, which makes observation difficult or impossible.

　　Cartoon production: Hu Yanzhu

　　This coincidence occurred in the evening, and the time period was very friendly, which was just suitable for observation in China. At this time, the brightness of Venus is -3.9, Jupiter is -2.1, and the angular distance between the two stars is only 33 seconds, which is similar to the apparent diameter of the full moon (0.5 degrees). At sunset, the horizon height of Venus and Jupiter reaches 28 degrees, and the observation time is nearly 2 hours. Because these two planets are very bright, even in cities with serious light pollution, they can be easily captured with the naked eye.

　　Dai Jianfeng, an astronomy enthusiast in Chongqing, accompanied Jin Mu in Yuanmou Tulin, Yunnan on the evening of February 17th, 2023. (Photo courtesy of myself)

　　"Because Venus is closer to the sun and the earth, it runs faster, while Jupiter is farther away from the sun and the earth, and its running speed is slightly slower, so after this conjunction, these two planets will ‘ Go their separate ways ’ It seems to be drifting away. If we can shoot them at the same time every day during this time, we can find that their trajectory is a ‘ X’ Form. " Xiu Lipeng said.