25 WEATHER — Though there is a lot that is still unknown about our overall solar system, there is much that we do know about the individual planets.
Mercury, the smallest planet in our solar system, will be making it’s best appearance in the night sky tonight — April 11, 2023.
The planet Mercury will reach its greatest eastern elongation of 19.5 degrees from the sun. And what that means is that it will be the best time to view Mercury in the sky as it will be at its highest point above the horizon.
Hopefully the clouds will be kind and move out of our way so we can get those telescopes ready. Mercury, being the smallest planet in our solar system, is just a little bigger that our moon.
This terrestrial planet’s orbit is the closest to the sun and is also the fastest moving planet. It moves at about 29 miles per second. It only takes 88 days for it to make a complete orbit around the sun. Compared to earth, it is approximately four times faster.
So, this evening, look up into the sky on the western horizon just after sunset, around 7:55 p.m., and see if you can catch Mercury.
