November 14, 2024

Jupiter & Saturn Conjunction – Closest Approach!

Jupiter & Saturn Conjunction – 12/21/2020, 18h03m EST

Camera: Canon 450D (Rebel XSi)

Lens: Canon EF 75-300 @ 135mm f/5.6

Filter: Sunpak UV/IR

Exposure: 1x2sec, ISO 400 saved as RAW

Darks: Internal (Long Exposure Noise Reduction On)

Software: Nebulosity, Photoshop

Wellll, we got lucky! The clouds parted just long enough to sneak a peek at the Grand Conjunction! I grabbed my camera and ran over to a local park and managed to grab a couple of quick frames before the clouds rolled in. I just used my Canon 450D on a tripod and a 2-second delay to allow vibrations to settle before the shutter tripped. If you look closely you can see a couple of Jupiter’s moons.  Their separation at this time was 0.1 degrees! Closest approach! Over the next couple of nights the view will be very similar as Jupiter slowly slips off to the upper left. Wonderful!