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
- E. Bowell
- Discovery site
- Anderson Mesa Stn.
- Discovery date
- 11 February 1980
- Pronunciation
- / k æ l ˈ p ɜːr n i ə /
- Named after
- Calpurnia ( Julius Caesar 's wife)
- Alternative designations
- 1980 CF · 1972 XN 2 , 1976 OE
~2 min read
Article
2542 Calpurnia, provisionally designated 1980 CF, is a carbonaceous high-albedo asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 20 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 11 February 1980, by American astronomer Edward Bowell at Anderson Mesa Station, Flagstaff, United States. The asteroid was named after Julius Caesar's wife, Calpurnia.
Orbit and classification