Picture of the Day · NASA
Jupiter and Venus from Earth
2026-06-07
It was visible around the world. The sunset conjunction of Jupiter (left) and Venus (right) in 2012 was visible almost no matter where you lived on Earth. Anyone on our planet with a clear western horizon at sunset could see them. That year, a creative photographer traveled away from the town lights of Szubin, Poland to photograph a near closest approach of the two planets. The bright planets were then separated by only three degrees and his daughter struck a humorous pose. A faint red sunset still glowed in the background. Jupiter and Venus are together again this week after sunset, passing within a degree of each other about two days from today.
© Marek Nikodem (PPSAE) · via NASA APOD
Key facts
- Discovered by
- J. Kveton
- Discovery site
- Kleť Obs.
- Discovery date
- 31 May 1979
- Named after
- Písek (Czech town)
- Alternative designations
- 1979 KC · 1937 NP, 1953 EJ 1 · 1953 ET 1 , 1978 EF 1
- Minor planet category
- main-belt · ( middle ) , Eunomia
~3 min read
Article
2672 Písek, provisional designation 1979 KC, is a Eunomia asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 25 kilometers (16 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 31 May 1979, by Yugoslav astronomer Jaroslav Květoň at the Kleť Observatory in the Czech Republic. The likely elongated asteroid is a suspected tumbler and a slow rotator with an exceptionally long period of 831 hours. It was named after the Czech town of Písek.
Orbit and classification