Okay, so I know it doesn’t look like much, and I know there are many who could do better; but for me, this image is a big deal. This is Venus as it really looks (click image for larger version) and I am pleased with what it represents, both astronomically and personally.
Venus is one of my favorite wide-field targets because it is so brilliant; but I wanted to see if I could capture Venus as the planet that it is, rather than the bright star that it resembles. And I wanted to do it with no telescope – just me and my camera.
Currently, Venus is at -11% illumination and quickly waning, by about 3/4 percent every day. Obviously my crescent appears a little larger than -11%. I think that can be attributed to Venus’ highly reflective atmosphere (I should take the image when the sky is less dark and requires shorter exposures), and the very fact that I’m not using a telescope. Planets appear extremely tiny in non-telescopic images, and significant cropping introduces some distortion. But cropping I must do if I am to share without need of a magnifying glass. 
If you haven’t had a good look at Venus yet, now is the time to do it. In fact, observing Venus right now, this month, is an excellent opportunity to see our solar system in action. Best of all, you don’t need any expensive equipment or any astronomy experience.
Start with a pair of binoculars to see if you can discern Venus’ crescent shape. You’ll notice that, as we get closer to the end of the month, that crescent becomes not only thinner, but more apparent. On March 21, though Venus will be just 1% illuminated, the planet itself will appear larger! The evolving phases are because Venus is between us and the Sun (think about our moon) and that growing size is because Venus is closing in on our planet as the two make their way around the Sun.
As Venus overtakes Earth, it is also passing between us and the Sun. As this happens, Venus will appear ever closer to the Sun. The closer it appears to the Sun, the greater our chances of seeing Venus both in the evening and morning skies. We’ll have that opportunity in the last week of March, with Venus appearing just 8 degrees north of the Sun on March 27. That week, you’ll find Venus to the left of the Sun in the evening – very close to the horizon by this time – and to the right of the Sun in the morning.
Adding a little extra sparkle to the scene, perhaps to welcome Venus to the morning sky, Luna appears as its own waning crescent about 20 degrees to the right of Venus on the morning of March 25. Make an extra effort to have a look that morning, maybe even take a picture. At this point, Venus will be nearing its end as an evening star – we won’t see it again in the sunset sky again until next year – and beginning its all-year reign as a morning star.
As we approach that last week of March, when Venus appears closest to the Sun, put away your binoculars and view only with your unaided eyes. Viewing the sun through binoculars or telescopes can cause immediate and serious eye damage. Looking at Venus at just 8 degrees from the Sun is comparable to separating the two by a distance less than the width of your fist – too close for comfort!
As time passes, and Venus rises earlier – further from the Sun – get your binoculars out again and have another look at that crescent. You’ll notice that rather than a waning or thinning crescent, Venus’ illuminated side is growing! Again, this can be compared to the phases of our moon, but with Venus, those phases are the exact opposite. Venus is a waning crescent in the evening sky and a waxing crescent in the morning sky. And now, by watching our sister planet evolve from evening star to morning star, you’ve witnessed our solar system in action, up-close and in real-time.
Whether you do use binoculars, telescopes, cameras, or your unaided eye to observe the sky, remember to think about what you’re seeing. What we see is much more than a pretty picture. It is the story of who and what we are – and very possibly, a story that holds the key to who and what we will come to be.
