EPIPHANY MIRACLE: See the actual Epiphany star the three wise men saw TONIGHT
ON the Christian festival of Epiphany today if you look up at the moon tonight you will spot an abnormally bright star beneath it.
The three wise men following the Star of Bethlehem
The Bible says the the three wise men used this star as a guide to reach Bethlehem and the birth of Christ - an event celebrated the world over today on the feast of Epiphany.
What you are actually looking at, and what astronomers believe they saw, is the planet Venus which reaches its peak height above the horizon this month, and will be most visible on January 12.
Whereas stars typically appear as small and almost perfectly spherical in the night sky, when planets are visible, as the sunlight reflects off of them, they seem as if they have prongs of light radiating from them.
The bright looking ‘star’ holds extra significance for Christians this time around, as it appeared just days before Epiphany – the 12th day of Christmas, which falls on January 6, and signifies the end of the festive season for Christians.
Adding even more to the equation, many theologists and astronomers believe that the bright star that apparently guided the Three Kings to Jesus on the day of his birth was actually Venus, or a combination of Venus and Jupiter giving the appearance of a powerful star.
A few people have asked me what the bright planet is below the moon tonight. It's Venus. Very beautiful.
— Brian Cox (@ProfBrianCox) January 2, 2017
If that is the case and the Three Wise Men were following Venus, that would give you the chance to follow the same ‘star’ that they followed in the build up to Epiphany.
To see Venus over the course of January, look up at the moon around 20 minutes after sunset on a clear night, and then gaze slightly south west.
Venus is visible in January
Venus is the bright object that outshines all of the stars in the sky and it will be at its brightest on January 12.
Venus, Earth’s closest neighbour, is the hottest planet in the Solar System.
Venus and the Moon this evening... pic.twitter.com/rFreQOoU8K
— Pete Lawrence (@Avertedvision) January 2, 2017
Temperatures on the planet second closest to the Sun, exceed 460 degrees celsius as it is high in volcanic activity and has a thick, heavy atmosphere that is full of carbon dioxide.
Venus spins much more slowly on its axis than Earth, with a typical day on Venus lasting 117 Earth days.
Venus is Earth's closest neighbour
This has allowed the atmosphere to become 90 times as thick as Earth’s.