On the evening of September 14, a thin crescent Moon and bright Venus will appear close together low in the western sky. Their apparent separation of about half a degree is roughly equal to the width of a full moon.
In parts of Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi, the Moon may briefly pass in front of Venus as seen from Earth. A telescope will also reveal that Venus itself appears as a crescent during this period.
Venus reaches the brightest point of its evening appearance around September 18 and 19, at an apparent magnitude of about minus 4.8. It will shine low in the west or southwest shortly after sunset.
The Mid Autumn Festival falls on September 25, while the exact full moon occurs shortly after midnight on September 27. To an ordinary observer, the Moon will look almost equally round on all three evenings.
