What makes the moon loom so much larger and brighter is its distance. Indeed, the diameter of our natural satellite measures 2,158 miles (3,474 km) compared to Jupiter’s 88,846 miles (142,984 km) width. The moon, of course, far outshines Jupiter by more than 9 magnitudes a brightness ratio of 4,370 to 1.īut the moon is also much smaller than Jupiter. (Image credit: NASA ) Size (and Distance) Mattersįinally, when you look at the moon and Jupiter late on Sunday night, try to become aware of the difference in both their respective sizes and distances. From top to bottom, the moons shown are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. This family portrait, a composite of the Jovian system, includes the edge of Jupiter with its Great Red Spot, and Jupiter's four largest moons, known as the Galilean satellites. Those in the central and western states, where the sky will still be dark, will then be able to see all four moons aligned on one side of Jupiter. Shortly thereafter Io will pass behind Jupiter, but will emerge back into view a little over three hours later. EDT (0615 GMT), Io will fade away as it becomes eclipsed by Jupiter's shadow.
15), the fourth moon (Europa) will emerge into view from behind the disk of Jupiter, joining Ganymede and Callisto. They orbit Jupiter so quickly (1.68 days for Io to 16.7 days for Callisto) that they change their appearance from hour to hour and night to night.Īs an example, if you train a telescope on Jupiter on Sunday night, initially, you’ll see a single moon (Io) on one side of Jupiter and two (Ganymede and Callisto) on the other. They serve as a constant delight to amateur astronomers and can be seen in any telescope and even binoculars. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) Dance of the moonsĪnd don’t forget Jupiter's four major moons, which were discovered 412 years ago by Galileo. Since your clenched fist held at arm’s length is roughly 10 degrees in width, Saturn and Jupiter are currently about 4.5 "fists" apart.Īn illustration showing Saturn at opposition in the night sky of Aug. It's located 46 degrees to the west (right) of Jupiter. Also on Sunday, Saturn will arrive at its own opposition.
Opposition, when it will be nearest to Earth and in the sky all night long - from sunset to sunrise - is just a little over six weeks away, on Sep. And they will also appear to be closer to each other with the gap between the two having shrunk to 3 degrees. Moreover, the orientation before the two will have changed noticeably as they cross the southern meridian at that early hour, Jupiter will appear to be glowing directly above the moon. Jupiter and the moon will remain visible right on through the rest of the night, peaking toward the south just before 4 a.m., at an altitude that measures more than halfway from the horizon to the point directly overhead (the zenith).
Looking for a telescope to see Jupiter? We recommend the Celestron Astro Fi 102 (opens in new tab) as the top pick in our best beginner's telescope guide.
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