NavList:

I saw Venus in daylight again just now. Its altitude was 40°, and its elongation from the Sun is 20°. It happened to be on the same azimuth as the Sun, within about a degree, so that helped a great deal. I used a Davis Mk 3 sextant to line up a tree branch at the proper angular altitude with only a crude guess for the level of the true horizon. I could just barely detect Venus without optical aid, but once I found the right spot, it was easy in 7x35 binoculars. Yesterday was a bit better probably due to less haze.

I had predicted a few weeks back that March 8 would be the last reasonable day to hunt for Venus in daylight by "naked eye" -- without optical aid. I do think we're at the bitter end for this side of the Sun. It's getting closer to the Sun and will pass by it, 8.5° to the North, on March 23. Venus is also getting fainter, a thinner and thinner crescent, as it approaches inferior conjunction, but that's not yet a major factor for visibility.

Through binoculars, at 7x magnification, the tiny crescent of Venus looks like a white, glowing Viking longship. It's a ghost ship on its way to Valhalla. The circumstances when I looked at it today and yesterday oriented it almost horizontally with the open "cup" of the crescent pointing toward the zenith, enhanced the appearance of a tiny boat with upturned ends.

The image here is an impression of how Venus looked this afternoon... not an actual photo.

Frank Reed
Clockwork Mapping / ReedNavigation.com
Conanicut Island, North America

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