Peace On Earth, Good View Toward Heaven

Two days after Christmas observers witnessed a waxing crescent moon paired with the planet Venus in the southwest sky. These celestial bodies are the second and third brightest objects in our skies. On this evening the moon shone at -10.49 magnitude while brilliant Venus glowed at -3.98 magnitude. The objects are shown over Hampshire Drive in Marion, Iowa, as seen from the grounds just west of Christ Community United Methodist Church around 5:13 PM, Tuesday, December 27, 2011. This image was a 1/4-second exposure at f/14, 800 ISO and 26mm focal length.