| Mercury Elongation: Dusk with Pleiades April 29, 2022 ⬅︎ |
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Most stargazers have never seen Mercury because it is so close to the sun and difficult to view. The best times to try are at maximum elongations when Mercury appears furthest from the sun in our sky. There are two kinds of elongations depending on the side of the sun Mercury appears on:
Dawn Elongations occur when Mercury appears on the right (west) side of the sun. Mercury can be viewed for a short time after it rises and before the sun rises.
Dusk Elongations occur when Mercury appears on the left (east) side of the sun. Mercury can be viewed for a short time after the sun sets and before it sets.
Because Mercury orbits the sun so rapidly, it will have seven maximum elongations in 2022 alternating between dawn and dusk. However only three of them will be good for viewing. This is because Mercury's altitude above the horizon during its short viewing window can vary a lot due to Earth's tilt and Mercury's elliptical orbit. The diagram above shows Mercury's peak altitude at each of the elongations.
2022 Maximum Elongations
✅ Jan 23: 8° peak altitude, dusk, 9 days of Easy viewing
❌ Feb 16: 4° peak altitude, dawn, 0 days of Easy viewing
✅ Apr 29: 13° peak altitude, dusk , 22 days of Easy viewing more details
❌ Jun 16: 2° peak altitude, dawn , 0 days of Easy viewing
❌ Aug 27: only 1° peak altitude, dusk, 0 days of Easy viewing
✅ Oct 8: 10° peak altitude, dawn, 15 days of Easy viewing
❌ Dec 21: 6° peak altitude, dusk, 0 days of Easy viewing
For help in understanding angular distances (degrees), click here.
WARNING: since Mercury is so close to the sun in our sky, use great caution is using a telescope or binocular to view it, especially at dawn, when a rising sun may enter the field of view unexpectedly and cause severe eye damage.
Good luck in your efforts in viewing Mercury and joining the ranks of the few stargazers who have seen this elusive planet! |
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