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1
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Venus 2.0° South of Jupiter at 9h UT (43° from Sun, evening sky). Mags. -4.1 and -2.0. The two brightest planets & the Moon nearby!
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1
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Moon very near Venus and Jupiter at 16h UT (43° from Sun, evening sky). Mag. -4.1. Spectacular occultation of Venus visible from most of western Europe. Look west after sunset.
• Sky Maps: Venus - Jupiter - Moon Encounter (Skymaps)
• Occultation of Venus (IOTA)
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5
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First Quarter Moon at 21:26 UT.
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5
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Mars at conjunction with Sun at 22h UT (not visible). The red planet passes into the morning sky.
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11
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Moon very near the Pleiades at 7h UT (evening sky). Occultation visible from all of North America.
• Occultation of the Pleiades (IOTA)
• The Pleiades (Wikipedia)
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12
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Full Moon at 16:37 UT. The full Moon of December is called the "Moon Before Yule" in folklore.
• Full Moon Names (Wikipedia)
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12
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Moon at perigee (closest to Earth) at 22h UT (356,566 km; 33.5'). High tides expected.
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13
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Geminid Meteor Shower peaks at 23h UT. Produces bright, medium-speed meteors at its peak (up to 80 meteors/hour). The parent body of the Geminids is a mysterious asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon believed to be an extinct comet.
Viewing unfavorable due to very bright moonlight.
• The Geminids (Gary Kronk)
• Meteor Shower Calendar 2008 (IMO)
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14
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Moon near Pollux at 19h UT (morning sky).
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15
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Moon near Beehive cluster (M44) at 19h UT.
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17
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Moon near Regulus at 8h UT (morning sky).
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18
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Moon near Saturn at 22h UT (96° from Sun, morning sky). Mag. +1.0.
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19
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Last Quarter Moon at 10:29 UT.
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21
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Moon near Spica at 12h UT (morning sky).
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21
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December solstice at 12:04 UT. The time when the Sun reaches the point farthest south of the celestial equator marking the start of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and summer in the Southern Hemisphere.
• December Solstice (Wikipedia)
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25
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Moon near Antares at 7h UT (24° from Sun, morning sky).
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26
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Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 18h UT (distance 406,601 km; angular size 29.4').
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27
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New Moon at 12:22 UT. Start of lunation 1064.
• Lunation Number (Wikipedia)
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29
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Moon very near Jupiter at 9h UT (20° from Sun, evening sky). Occultation visible from western-half of Australia.
• Occultation of Jupiter (IOTA)
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31
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Mercury 1.2° from Jupiter at 15h UT (evening sky). Mags. -0.7 & -1.9.
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31
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Moon near Venus at 18h UT (46° from Sun, evening sky).
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All times Universal Time (UT). USA Eastern Standard Time = UT - 5 hours.
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