Venus and Mercury Trails

Photographer: Marcella Giulia Pace
Country: Italy

In this composite image, which receives an honourable mention in the Still images of phases of Venus category, both Mercury (left) and Venus (right) can be seen heading into the sunset. The phases of each are beautifully captured as they descend. Not all planets or moons in the Solar System show phases as viewed from Earth. This phenomenon occurs because the orbits of Venus and Mercury are positioned between Earth’s orbit and the Sun, sometimes allowing us to see only part of the illuminated portion of each planet. These phases are similar to the phases we see of our own Moon.

Also see image in Zenodo: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10359166

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