A rare daytime lunar occultation took place this week, with Venus momentarily vanishing behind the moon. The celestial event, captured in a stunning timelapse video on June 17, was visible across a wide swathe of North America.
A Daytime Skywatching Opportunity
During the event, the moon passed directly in front of Venus, obscuring the planet from view. This particular occultation was unusual because it occurred during daylight hours for many observers, offering a unique skywatching opportunity. The timelapse video shows the small, bright point of Venus disappearing behind the dark edge of the crescent moon before reappearing.
Understanding Lunar Occultations
A lunar occultation happens when the Moon moves directly between Earth and another celestial body, such as a planet or star, temporarily hiding it from sight. While lunar occultations themselves are relatively common, it is far less frequent for the moon to pass in front of a bright planet like Venus, Mars, Jupiter, or Saturn. The moon travels eastward across the sky at approximately 2,300 mph, allowing it to periodically align with stars and, less often, planets.
Despite Venus being about 240 times farther from Earth than the Moon, the Moon appears significantly larger in our sky, enabling it to completely cover the planet during such an event.
Steve Lopez is the Editorial Page Editor for News Raise. He covers Health. He has won more than a dozen national journalism awards for his reporting and column writing at seven newspapers and four news magazines.
