c4countdown

Hiyo,

For anyone interested, the planet Mercury is currently in an excellent position for evening viewing. It follows the sun into the horizon. Best viewing time I think is about an hour after the sun has gone down, when the first stars are becoming visible. It's a fair bit to the left of where the sun went down, (at the moment towards where the moon is )

It is just about visible as a naked eye object, and quite easy to pick out in binoculars if you scan the sky (obviously don't scan for it when the sun is up, you won't see it and might end up carrying a white stick for the rest of your life), it's noticably brighter than stars and you may just be able to make out that it is not a pinpoint of light, which stars always appear to be.

Enjoy..

DC

I've only ever seen Mercury in the morning shortly before sunrise. Binoculars were certainly not necessary, as it was brighter than most other things in the sky. This evening would have been ideal, had I realised that Mercury was in a good position; I'd been out with my dog during and after dusk, and had been looking at the stars as they were appearing. Hopefully the sky will be clear again tomorrow. Thanks for the info, Dave.