Sachys: Just for those that enjoy a little stargazing...

"All this month the two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, have been drawing closer together in the west in the evening twilight — and drawing all eyes toward them. Look west on a clear evening as dusk is fading, and you can't miss them. They're the brightest celestial objects after the Sun and Moon.

At the beginning of June, the two planets were 20° apart in the sky, about twice the width of your fist held at arm's length. Week by week, Jupiter and the stars behind it have gradually slipped lower in the evening twilight. But Venus, due to its rapid orbital motion around the Sun, has stayed high up. The resulting slow-motion convergence is setting the stage for a pair of dramatic sky sights."

"The pairing on June 30th is so tight that a small backyard telescope will show both planets in the same field of view, Venus appearing as a brilliant, fat crescent and Jupiter accompanied by its four largest moons. Telescopically, the two planets will appear nearly the same size — Jupiter, though much larger in reality, is also much farther away. But their globes will contrast dramatically in brightness, with Venus's crescent appearing dazzlingly white compared to Jupiter's duller, striped cloud deck."

Fully visible with the naked eye, and a compact camera should manage an OK photo / give a better view as well - just been out and had a look myself, though my photos didnt turn out very well (a little too much haze to get a clear pic here or I'd have added one).
Further details at the link:

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/press-releases/venus-and-jupiter-june-2015/

*tried making a thread but it kept on the spinning wheel of gogbear

Sachys: its worth a look. allegedly (according to some sites i visited) the last time this happened was about 2000 years ago, and is probably responsible for the "star of bethlehem" thing

SalarShushan: It may be the conjunction that got the Magi looking for a prophesied king, but the description of the events when they went to see Baby Jesus sounded more like a comet (or something angelic - or a ufo ;)

My hubby and I looked at the conjunction last night and plan to peek at it again tonight - if the clouds will roll out of the way soon enough. Lovely!

Sachys: O_________o

no idea which weird colonial bible you've read then!

o_________O

SalarShushan: The super bright light described 'which came to rest over Bethlehem^ sounds more like the effect of a comet or a supernova than a conjunction, but the Magi mention the sign in the sky that sent them - and that probably was a conjunction involving Jupiter (in the constellation of Aries or Pisces) possibly with the Moon, Saturn, or Venus

Sachys: Um...

yeah, that sounds like a weird colonial version of the bible. Sorry - but thats what you've given me.

Leucius: *Pokes head in*

Yo. I've recently gotten back into FF XIV. Good stuff, though it requires some dedication. Also finally got around to starting The Witcher 2 - wow, good game :) Only a few years late to the party, but hey, at least now my pc can max Witcher 2! Rofl

Leucius: *Pokes head in*

Yo. I've recently gotten back into FF XIV. Good stuff, though it requires some dedication. Also finally got around to starting The Witcher 2 - wow, good game :) Only a few years late to the party, but hey, at least now my pc can max Witcher 2! Rofl

Sachys: Does it also give HD GOGbears?!

cecil: I know tell me bout it I can finally run the witcher 2 it will take another 5 or 10 years till on Max but it runs well enough on low or medium to play ;)

Leucius: It's a beast of a game, to be sure. I have ubersampling on and at times I still have some graphical lag, usually in certain cutscenes.

Leucius: HD GOGbears that put skyrim to shame.

Sachys: gotta be better than the thomas the tank engine mod