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
- R. M. West
- Discovery site
- La Silla Obs.
- Discovery date
- 24 October 1976
- Pronunciation
- / ˈ s t ɛ n t ər / ·
- Named after
- Stentor , (Greek mythology)
- Alternative designations
- 1976 UQ
~3 min read
Article
2146 Stentor /ˈstɛntər/ is a Jupiter trojan from the Greek camp, approximately 51 kilometers (32 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 24 October 1976, by Danish astronomer Richard Martin West at the ESO's La Silla Observatory in Chile. The dark Jovian asteroid has a rotation period of 16.4 hours and belongs to the 100 largest Jupiter trojans. It was named after Stentor from Greek mythology, a Herald of the Greeks during the Trojan War.
Orbit and classification