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Venus and Jupiter are closing rapidly in preparation for their conjunction on August 12.  Venus has moved into central Gemini and shines at magnitude -3.98, while Jupiter has brightened to magnitude -1.95; they are now separated by only 2°56'17".  The just-past-full-Moon was low in the west behind my back as I took this picture, so the sky unfortunately appears somewhat washed out.  Compare this view with that of August 2, 2001 to see how the positions of Venus and Jupiter have shifted from one instance of this conjunction to the next.