I'm living in the southern part of the Republic of Ireland. At 05.50 am GMT I was driving directly east on my way to work. I could see the moon clearly in front of me. I could see no other stars in the sky but I could see a very bright (non moving) object directly above and just slightly to the right of the moon. It looked incredibly bright and this was seen in a suburban area.
Was this a planet or a star and can you give me it's name, please?
2007-11-06 03:54:39 · 13 answers · asked by Melok 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Thanks Beanie. Here's a star for you. That explains why it was so bright.
2007-11-06 04:10:48 · update #1
Who is the phantom "thumbs downer"?
Venus is looking very popular here!
2007-11-06 04:12:21 · update #2
Without looking it up, it's Venus ..
check it here http://www.sky-map.org/
Actually, Google Earth has a 'Sky' function as well ..
2007-11-06 03:57:48 · answer #1 · answered by Steve B 7 · 4⤊ 1⤋
What you saw was definitely the planet Venus.
Although Comet Holmes is bright for a comet, it is nowhere near as bright as Venus, and on the opposite side of the sky, in the northwest, in the early morning. The north star, Polaris, being close to the north celestial pole, can never be anywhere near the Moon.
2007-11-06 14:16:55 · answer #2 · answered by GeoffG 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's Venus, also known as the Morning Star (or the evening star when visible in the evenings).
Contrary to previous answers, it is not the comet (which is nowehere near as bright as Venus), Venus is not called the North Star, and Venus is the third brightest object in the sky after the Sun and the Moon and is hence very clearly visible to the naked eye.
2007-11-06 12:02:07 · answer #3 · answered by Jason T 7 · 7⤊ 1⤋
Wow! I can't believe the morons you got by asking this question! It is definitely Venus. Venus is NOT the North Star (OMG!). Venus is a planet... not a star. It is visible in the morning. I can't believe you got answers from people who have probably never even looked up into the sky.
2007-11-06 12:58:35 · answer #4 · answered by Surveyor 5 · 2⤊ 1⤋
You did see the planet Venus.
Venus is called both the morning star and the evening star, which is a holdover from ancient times when the nature of planets was not understood properly, and people did not realize that they were the same object.
The morning star was classically named "Phosphorus," and the evening star "Hesperus."
2007-11-06 19:00:12 · answer #5 · answered by aviophage 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Lucky you, you've seen Venus at its brightest this month - the 5th and 6th of Nov. It would have been to the left of the crescent moon at dawn. And contrary to what someone else said, it is not called the North Star!!
Melok, i think the phantom hands-downer is someone who doesn't like being wrong ;-)
i used to get up really early for such sightings when I was a student studying astronomy, but getting too tired for that anymore!
2007-11-06 12:03:49 · answer #6 · answered by beanie 5 · 7⤊ 1⤋
irrelevant but its the evening star. obviously its name is because it is first to be visuable before the sun has set properly. venus is visuable for most of the year. i envy what you saw, i never catch events like this. the north star is polaris, i think you guys should stop laying into this person who tried to share his brief knowledge, it was a mistake. ok.
Edit: morons eh? ofcourse its not a star! idiot! its called the evening star! planets follow the celestrial orbit too ! like the sun! and the moon! all to do with the rotattion of the earth...
2007-11-06 12:41:24 · answer #7 · answered by Nick 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
everyone says its the beautiful Venus the planet of relationships/similarities,
I am so jealous you actually saw this beuty.
6am is a lovely time in the morning.
2007-11-07 10:03:21 · answer #8 · answered by jupiteress 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is Venus.
2007-11-06 12:05:36 · answer #9 · answered by Owl Eye 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
a comet exploded in space and is now visible to the naked eye. that's probably what you saw. they are calling it comet holmes. this comet is said to be as bright as the planet venus
2007-11-06 11:59:12 · answer #10 · answered by kevins hippy chick 2 · 0⤊ 11⤋