# Jupiter Occultation. Why is this an " eye-catching sight"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 4, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104 "2004-12-04T21:05:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bruce\_Daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@Bruce\_Daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bruce_Daddy)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104/1 "2004-12-04T21:05:19Z")
I read [this](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=96&e=12&u=/space/rareeventjupitertohidebehindthemoon) article and I don’t get it. I did a GIS and I guess [this](http://www.graviton.demon.co.uk/images/Jupiter%20occultation%203-3155.jpg) is kind of cool but “eye-catching”? From the Yahoo! story: > [@](#): > > The most spectacular part of this sky show will be the gradual reappearance of Jupiter from behind the Moon’s dark limb. > > The description of Jupiter’s gradual reappearance from behind the Moon’s dark limb in 1968 was described as “quite dramatic” as seen from Chicago. Meanwhile an observer at La Pryor, Texas noted that the most spectacular feature for him was the naked-eye impression of Jupiter looking “like a brightening jewel on the dark limb of the Moon.” I don’t understand what they’re talking about. Is this worth getting up at 4 in the morning to see or not? ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104/2 "2004-12-04T21:36:08Z")
Well, it’s all about what floats your boat. To me, it sounds like it might be worth getting up to see. But I’ll go out on freezing evenings to look at dim comets, Iridium flares, meteor showers or potential auroras while being totally uninterested, for example, in front row seats at a Celtics game. In terms of visual spectacle, it’s probably not all \* that \*. However, Jupiter is one of the brightest objects in the sky, and seeing it appear gradually from the dark side of the moon would be rather cool ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104/3 "2004-12-04T21:48:12Z")
I watched the occultation of Saturn by the Moon last year, and that was freakin’ awesome. I didn’t just sit there the whole time. I just popped out for ingress and egress. We had great viewing conditions, too. Saturn was beautiful and bright, and to see it covered by the Moon and then re-emerge blew my mind. How cool is it to _watch the Moon moving in its orbit???_ Awesome.\* That said, I don’t think I’ll get up at 4 AM for it, 'cause I saw it already. \*Finally, we have a definitive answer to the burning question, “What, exactly, floats **Podkayne’s** boat?” ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104/4 "2004-12-04T21:58:15Z")
I saw an occultation of Saturn once, and it was a lot more exciting than I expected. It’s one of the rare times when you can see movement in the night sky with your own eyes (i.e. without a time-lapse photo). You get a real feel of how dynamic and 3-dimentional the solar system is. And the sight of a small faraway planet half eclipsed by the moon is a strange and rare sight. But it’s not so exciting that people with no interest in astronomy will be impressed. You’ve got to understand and appreciate what’s going on. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2004, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jupiter-occultation-why-is-this-an-eye-catching-sight/278104/5 "2004-12-04T22:15:54Z")
That picture totally doesn’t do it justice. Jupiter is _bright_, and watching it gradually return to full brightness along the dark limb of the moon would be awesome indeed. Furthermore, if you have a telescope, you can watch the four satellites reappear before and after Jupiter. You can even switch your gaze back and forth between the 'scope and the sky to watch it unfold on two different scales. The chance of clear skies where I live is about 1 in 20 this time of year, so I won’t get my hopes up, but I’ll at least set my alarm and stick my head out my window. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.