<P> To the naked eye, Venus appears as a white point of light brighter than any other planet or star (apart from the Sun). The planet's mean apparent magnitude is - 4.14 with a standard deviation of 0.31 . The brightest magnitude occurs during crescent phase about one month before or after inferior conjunction . Venus fades to about magnitude − 3 when it is backlit by the Sun . The planet is bright enough to be seen in a clear midday sky and is more easily visible when the Sun is low on the horizon or setting . As an inferior planet, it always lies within about 47 ° of the Sun . </P> <P> Venus "overtakes" Earth every 584 days as it orbits the Sun . As it does so, it changes from the "Evening Star", visible after sunset, to the "Morning Star", visible before sunrise . Although Mercury, the other inferior planet, reaches a maximum elongation of only 28 ° and is often difficult to discern in twilight, Venus is hard to miss when it is at its brightest . Its greater maximum elongation means it is visible in dark skies long after sunset . As the brightest point - like object in the sky, Venus is a commonly misreported "unidentified flying object". </P> <P> As it orbits the Sun, Venus displays phases like those of the Moon in a telescopic view . The planet appears as a small and "full" disc when it is on the opposite side of the Sun (at superior conjunction). Venus shows a larger disc and "quarter phase" at its maximum elongations from the Sun, and appears its brightest in the night sky . The planet presents a much larger thin "crescent" in telescopic views as it passes along the near side between Earth and the Sun . Venus displays its largest size and "new phase" when it is between Earth and the Sun (at inferior conjunction). Its atmosphere is visible through telescopes by the halo of sunlight refracted around it . </P> <P> The Venusian orbit is slightly inclined relative to Earth's orbit; thus, when the planet passes between Earth and the Sun, it usually does not cross the face of the Sun . Transits of Venus occur when the planet's inferior conjunction coincides with its presence in the plane of Earth's orbit . Transits of Venus occur in cycles of 7009766849680000000 ♠ 243 years with the current pattern of transits being pairs of transits separated by eight years, at intervals of about 7009332932680000000 ♠ 105.5 years or 7009383424840000000 ♠ 121.5 years--a pattern first discovered in 1639 by the English astronomer Jeremiah Horrocks . </P>

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