Jupiter has spent the year 2019 in Ophiuchus in which it reached opposition during summer on June 10 at a position northwest of (which on our image means to the right of) the star theta Ophiuchi. Jupiter will pass behind the Sun, which is known as superior conjunction, on December 27, 2019.

Venus is just now emerging from its position of superior conjunction and climbing up into the evening sky. This upcoming apparition of Venus, which will occur mostly in 2020, will be very similar to those of 1988, 1996, 2004, 2012, and 2028. These apparitions are marked by a steep ascent into the winter and spring sky, inferior conjunction in June, followed by a similarly high appearance as Phosphorus which is the Greek name for Venus during its morning apparitions. Venus transited the Sun during the inferior conjunctions of 2004 and 2012.

But now, the immediate event for skywatchers is the impending conjunction between Jupiter and Venus, to occur on November 24. The pair is closest at 9:00 a.m. EST on the 24th, but of course this occurs during the daytime, so it is not easily observable. The two planets are separated by 1°24'27" at their moment of conjunction, but by the evening in Virginia, their separation has grown to 1°29'21".

Although they will be farther apart, Jupiter and Venus will have nearly equal height over the western horizon on November 25, which is potentially a more aesthetically satisfying view.

The next time Venus and Jupiter will engage in this type of conjunction will be on Nov 29, 2043. I hope to still be around to see it!

In early November 2019, we begin to see the impending conjunction of Venus and Jupiter taking shape.  On this date, Venus is still very low on the western horizon after sunset, with Jupiter well to its upper left.  Saturn is much farther away to the upper left in Capricornus.  Venus is magnitude -3.92 while Jupiter shines at magnitude -1.90, with a separation of 11°58'48" between them.  My Nikon D40 with its APS-C sensor, paired with this older 35 mm lens, yields a frame equivalent to a full frame sensor with a 52 mm lens.  Unannotated image.