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Birthday · July 2, 2011

Moon and Venus at Dawn

July 2, 2011

When you were born, the Sun rose on a world that had never seen you before. Since then, every dawn has arrived in a universe subtly altered...

Moon and Venus at Dawn

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APOD published July 2, 2011. Credit: Tunç Tezel. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.

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Moon and Venus at Dawn

Original APOD · July 2, 2011

Brilliant Venus and a thin crescent Moon stood together above the eastern horizon just before sunrise on June 30. The lovely celestial pairing is captured in this colorful twilight skyview overlooking a reservoir near Izmir, Turkey. For some, the close conjunction could be viewed as a daylight occultation. While Venus is nearing the end of its latest performance as planet Earth's morning star, the old lunar cresent, about 24 hours from its New Moon phase, was also bidding farewell for now to the dawn. In fact, for the next two nights a young Moon can be spotted just after sunset. Look for a thin sunlit sliver close to the western horizon, not far from bright planet Mercury.

Image credit: Tunç Tezel

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