In the early hours of Wednesday morning (21 August), the Moon and Saturn managed a real disappearing trick, which, however, was only short-lived.
Saturn seemed to flee behind the moon for about an hour, in a so-called “lunar occultation”. Countries with a good view of this act were Brazil, Portugal, Spain, France and Great Britain, according to In-The-Sky.org.
If you were unable to observe the lunar occultation (or simply couldn’t get out of bed this morning), you’re in luck, as photographer Josh Dury was up early to capture the event from his base in Somerset, UK. “I’ve been waiting for years to see a lunar occultation of Saturn. What could be more majestic than one of the most famous planets in the Solar System be obscured by the moon?” Dury said in an email to Space.com.
Dury took this photo between 4:00 and 5:27 a.m. BST (11:00 p.m. EDT and 12:27 a.m. EDT). The image consists of 30 sub-images stitched together to form a single picture.
“After days of following the weather forecast, I considered traveling for this event. However, I decided to stay close and see what I could get,” Dury explained.
Despite problems with the British weather, Dury managed to capture the cloud unfolding in the pre-dawn sky.
“The beginning of the event was clear, but the cloud became denser as the event progressed. That’s why I was only able to take a few images, at the time of the third contact, when Saturn appeared on the far side of the Moon,” Dury continued.
If you missed this sight, don’t worry: There will be another lunar occultation of Saturn on September 17, 2024, between 4:08 a.m. and 8:07 a.m. EDT (0808-1207 GMT). It will be visible along the western United States, Australia, western Canada, and northwestern Mexico, to name a few. To see if the occultation is visible from your location Check out IntheSky.org.
Never miss a view of the night sky again with our Night Sky Tonight page and monthly sky watching calendar.
And if you want to photograph close encounters between the Moon and Saturn (or another planet), we have tips for photographing the Moon and planets, as well as guides to the best cameras for astrophotography and the best lenses for astrophotography.
