Readers saw a very bright light last night (Mar. 1st) and again tonight (Mar. 2nd) in the skies over Lake Huron.
According to EarthSky, it is a sighting of Venus.
“Venus – the brightest planet – blazes mightily in the western sky after sunset. It’s the only bright planet to light up these March evenings all month long. Given clear skies, it’ll be hard to miss Venus, the third-brightest celestial body to light up the heavens, after the sun and moon. Some sharp-sighted people can even see Venus in a daytime sky.
Venus hits a big milestone, reaching its greatest elongation (46 degrees east) from the sun on March 24, 2020. This places Venus high in the western sky at sunset from around the world, with Venus lighting up the dark evening hours.
If you live at mid-to-far northern latitudes, you might be surprised at how high Venus appears at sundown, and also how long this planet stays out after dark. Whenever Venus reaches a greatest evening elongation in close concert with the spring equinox, Venus turns into a virtual night owl. Although Venus reaches a greatest evening elongation 5 times every 8 years, the favourable convergence of greatest elongation with the spring equinox only happens in cycles of 8 years. Enjoy Venus while the time is at hand!”
By Bruce McClure and Deborah Byrd in ASTRONOMY ESSENTIALS
