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Daytime Jupiter??
Hi Ian & All,
Interesting question Ian.
Yep I've seen Jupiter many times during the daytime -- the trick is knowing *precisely* where to look. Having the Moon close-by makes it somewhat easier as others have noted. The Moon serves both as a marker and also to get your eyes focused at infinity.
If you have a telescope with accurately aligned DSC in daytime, slew to Jupiter (you can see Jupiter easily in any telescope in the daytime). It is pretty simple to see Jupiter then in the finder. Once you have done that, try and then sight along the top of the finder with the unaided eye. I've seen it dozens of times in the middle of the day in this way -- most often from Sydney Observatory. It is easiest when Jupiter is 90 degrees from the Sun in the polarised zone of the sky.
I've also spotted Sirius and Alpha Centauri using a similar method at times up to an hour before the Sun sets (ie when it is fairly low on the horizon). These two and Canopus are easy to see through the telescope during the day.
Best,
Les D
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