Conjunction between Jupiter and Mars
2015 Oct 17
Dominic Ford – originally published on In-The-Sky.org
Jupiter and Mars will make a close approach, passing within 0°22' of each other.
From London (click to change), the pair will be visible in the dawn sky. They will rise at 03:40 (GMT), 3 hours and 50 minutes before the Sun, and attain an altitude of 30° above the south-eastern horizon before fading from view as dawn breaks at around 07:08.
At the moment of closest approach, Jupiter will be at mag -1.8, and Mars at mag 1.5, both in the constellation Leo.
At closest approach, the pair will be close enough to fit comfortably within the field of view of a telescope, but will also be visible to the naked eye or a through pair of binoculars.
The precise positions of Jupiter and Mars at the moment of closest approach will be as follows:
| Object | Right Ascension | Declination | Constellation | Magnitude | Angular Size |
| Jupiter | 11h02m20s | +07°11' | Leo | -1.8 | 31"4 |
| Mars | 11h03m00s | +07°32' | Leo | 1.5 | 4"0 |
The coordinates above are given in J2000.0. The pair will be at an angular separation of 40° from the Sun, which is in Virgo at this time of year.
The details of this observing event were provided courtesy of In-The-Sky.org
.