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
- K. Reinmuth
- Discovery site
- Heidelberg
- Discovery date
- 4 August 1921
- Alternative designations
- 1905 UN · 1920 GC · 1921 PC · 1943 PE · 1952 BE 2
- Observation arc
- 109.65 yr (40051 days)
- Aphelion
- 3.6711 AU (549.19 Gm )
~1 min read
Article
954 Li is a main belt asteroid and member of the Themis family. It was discovered by Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth on 4 August 1921 and was named after his wife Lina Alstede Reinmuth, who also had 955 Alstede named after her. Classified as an FCX-type asteroid under the Tholen classification scheme, Li's spectrum may indicate aqueous alteration. The asteroid is estimated to be around 52 kilometres (32 mi) in size, and observations of its lightcurve—variations in its observed brightness—indicate that it rotates once every 7.2 hours.
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