Venus and Mars put on a predawn show this week
The pair is especially worth looking for this week, as the planets appear to pass each other from our vantage point here on Earth.
Posted — UpdatedVenus will be lower on the horizon each morning this week, while Mars will be a bit higher. The two will appear less than one-quarter of a degree apart the morning of Oct. 5.
Mars appears to move more slowly through our sky because its year is three times that of Venus'. With Venus traveling at over 78,000 mph and Mars at nearly 54,000 mph in their orbits, this appearance that they are moving in opposite directions doesn't’t make sense at first glance.
This is a matter of perspective. This effect can also be seen on the road as you pass a slower moving vehicle. Focus on that other vehicle and, though it's moving just a few mph slower than yours, the slower vehicle appears to be moving backward. The illusion is broken as soon as you look to the background just a few feet away.
Your eye is more easily fooled against the background of stars in the night sky, however. The forward motion around the sun remains much more hidden as Venus and Mars dance around Sigma Leonis, a blue-white star in the constellation Leo 210 light years away.
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