Updated Feb. 17 at 9:30 p.m. EST:
From a press release by Sky & Telescope Magazine:
"When it comes to "eyeball astronomy," nothing is more satisfying than to see a pair of celestial objects appear close together in the sky, what astronomers call a conjunction. And 2015, notes Sky & Telescope's longtime contributing editor Fred Schaaf, truly deserves to be called the "Year of the Conjunctions." In January we watched Venus and Mercury come together in the evening twilight, and now comes a similarly close pairing of Venus and Mars. On Saturday they'll appear 1/2° apart for viewers in North America. That's about the width of a pencil held at arm's length.
"Venus and Mars have been edging closer together all month. Venus blazes in the southwest during late dusk; it's been climbing a little higher week by week. Mars, meanwhile, has lingered in roughly the same part of the twilight sky for several months, refusing to depart. Last week Mars was about 8° above Venus, but from February 17th through 26th, the two remain within 2° of each other. They're less than 1° apart (about your little finder's width at arm's length) from the 20th through the 23rd.
"Mars is only about 1% as bright as Venus just now. Since the pairing on the 21st is so close, Schaaf cautions, "little Mars might be hard to see in Venus's glare without optical aid." In other words, grab binoculars or a telescope to enhance your viewing experience."
It's February and love is in the air... and in the sky. The manly Mars and womanly Venus are due for a snuggle one week after the day of lovers, Valentine's Day, according to U.K.'s The Independent. Venus is set to show off in the western sky, being the most visible celestial body (besides our moon).
Mars should know what he is getting into by now with the "Planet of Love." Venus is the same size as our Earth, but it's closer to the hot Sun then we are, according to The Independent. She plays modest in a cloak of clouds, but those clouds are composed of sulphuric acid and they shroud the volcano-pocked surface.
The air on Venus is unbreathable. The atmosphere is made of carbon dioxide (the stuff we exhale) and Venus tops us at 90 times our Earthly atmospheric pressure. She runs hot at 460 degrees Celsius - 860 degrees Fahrenheit!
But Mars must like his women feisty, because he is approaching Venus this month. She will put on a show, shining brighter than ever - a hundred times brighter than frigid Mars, according to The Independent. The cosmic lovers will be closest on Feb. 21 and Feb. 22.
For an earlier show, check out Jupiter in opposition to our Sun on Feb. 6, according to Earth Sky. Jupiter will be opposite Venus and the second brightest object in the sky- after her, of course.
