The Moon, Venus, and Mercury!

I saw Mercury tonight! Got some pictures, too. Now if I can just convince this computer to upload them...

The Moon and Venus, May 21 2007, 8:32 PM EDT

Started out again tonight trying to pluck Venus out of a bright blue sky. As the Moon pulls away from Venus this will become a more and more difficult task. Again, Venus is in the lower right-hand corner. Compare to yesterday's photos.

The Western sky after sunset, May 21 2007, 8:35 PM

Thanks to a comment on Phil Plait's Bad Astronomy blog, I remembered that Mercury would be visible below Venus and low in the sky - it is at its greatest elongation from the Sun (I think) and is best positioned for observing. Clouds on the Western horizon made it seem unlikely that I would see Mercury. Only after carefully reviewing this photo did I notice...

Venus and Mercury, May 21 2007, 8:35 PM EDT

...the smallish bright point in the lower right-hand corner of this image. Could it be Mercury? Not many things can show up in the early twilight when even Venus is having a hard time showing through...but Mercury can!

Mercury above the rooftops, May 21 2007, 9:03 PM EDT

It was only after another half-our of scanning the horizon with my bare eyes that I noticed a bright pinpoint low on the horizon, about to disappear behind the rooftop of a neighbor. I got myself in position, stabilized the camera, and took the shot.

Venus and Mercury. May 21 2007, 9:04 PM EDT

With a minute or so to spare, I got this family portrait of Venus and Mercury. Again, Mercury is barely visible just above the rooftop in the lower right.

The Moon and Venus, May 21 2007, 9:05 EDT

Finally, I decided to wrap up the night with one more shot of the Moon and Venus. I love the color gradations brought on by twilight and the clouds in this picture (somewhat exaggerated by the jpeg compression.)

Tomorrow the Moon will probably be too far from Venus to get any meaningful images. But next month there's an occultation of Venus by the Moon on June 18th! It's a daytime event, so better sharpen up those daytime Moon-finding skills!