A Guide to the Parade of Planets in the February Sky"

 February is an exciting time for sky watchers, as a parade of planets will be visible in the night sky. This celestial event offers a unique opportunity to observe several planets in close proximity, making it an ideal time for amateur astronomers and sky enthusiasts to explore the wonders of our solar system.

Venus, Jupiter and Mars are very bright and easy to see with the naked eye. They appear in the twilight sky and keep us company for a good part of the evening for Venus and Jupiter and until the heart of the night for Mars. As usual, it is the shard of Mercury which is the most difficult to spot since we only have a good ten days to try our luck at dawn before this planet approaches the apparent position of the Sun and disappears in the brightness of the dawning day.

Mercury's orbit is more elliptical than Earth's, but its average distance from the Sun is close to 60 million kilometers, compared to just under 150 million kilometers for our planet. This physical proximity to the Sun translates into an apparent proximity in our sky, where the small point of the first planet of the Solar System never goes far from the star of the day and therefore almost always appears on a clear sky background. by dusk or dawn. When the apparent gap between Mercury and the Sun peaks, this planet is said to reach its maximum elongation, which is usually the best time to spot it with the naked eye. However, at European latitudes, the maximum elongations are not all favorable because it is also necessary to take into account the inclination of the trajectory of Mercury with respect to the horizon. The first maximum elongation of 2023, which currently takes place at dawn, is thus far from being the most favorable of the year and it is necessary to take advantage of favorable weather conditions to be able to locate this planet one hour before sunrise. , less than three degrees above a distant, clear east-southeast horizon. However, Mercury's intense brightness (zero magnitude) should allow us to see this planet with the naked eye until February 10 and a few more mornings with binoculars. is thus far from being the most favorable of the year and it is necessary to take advantage of favorable meteorological conditions to be able to locate this planet one hour before sunrise, at less than three degrees above an eastern horizon. -far and clear southeast. However, Mercury's intense brightness (zero magnitude) should allow us to see this planet with the naked eye until February 10 and a few more mornings with binoculars. is thus far from being the most favorable of the year and it is necessary to take advantage of favorable meteorological conditions to be able to locate this planet one hour before sunrise, at less than three degrees above an eastern horizon. -far and clear southeast. However, Mercury's intense brightness (zero magnitude) should allow us to see this planet with the naked eye until February 10 and a few more mornings with binoculars.

 By projecting the plane of the Earth's orbit onto the celestial sphere, a line called the ecliptic is drawn which materializes the apparent trajectory of the Sun throughout the year. The planets of the Solar System are always visible near the ecliptic because, because of the common origin of their formation, they traverse orbits quite slightly inclined with respect to that of the Earth – from seven degrees for Mercury to 0, 8 degrees for Uranus. The zodiacal constellations are all those through which the ecliptic passes and they are thirteen in number – the twelve signs of the zodiac plus the great figure of Ophiuchus, which is interposed between Scorpio and Sagittarius. One might think that the planets therefore circulate only within the zodiacal constellations, but the slightly convoluted limits of certain non-zodiacal constellations are sometimes so close to the ecliptic that the planets and the Moon can also visit the following figures: Whale, Coachman, Raven, Cup, Shield, Female Hydra, Orion, Pegasus, Little Dog, Snake and Sextant. Jupiter sets the example by traveling in the north of the Whale between February 5 and 19. Jupiter is easy to see at about twenty degrees above the west-southwest horizon two hours after sunset: on its right shine the stars of Pisces and, on its left, those of the Whale . They are not very bright and, if you observe in an urban environment, the sky will seem quite empty around Jupiter