The Moon & Jupiter

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The moon and the planet Jupiter were in closer conjunction during the night of Saturday, January 3, 2026, but sky conditions were cloudy in the Cedar Rapids, Iowa area all night, so no go there. The next evening proved clear, but with the moon and Jupiter farther apart. It still made a nice capture though, and the image shown here was captured at 8:39 pm CST, January 4. It looks southeast from Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids and is a 0.8 second exposure at f/5, ISO 400, 36mm focal length. Jupiter is the bright object near the top of the image (magnitude -2.21). Also seen are the bright stars left of Jupiter: 1.90 magnitude Castor (upper) and 1.15 magnitude Pollux (lower), both in the constellation Gemini. At right near the tree is the 0.40 magnitude star Procyon in the constellation Canis Minor. Air temperature was 32 degrees F. Nikon Z6ii camera.

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