DIY Astronomy for Jupiter and Saturn?

Yes it is, spot on

I've been looking but the Chiltern Hills are WSW from here and there has been a patch of cloud in the way both evenings.

Yes! But it's a conjunction not an occlusion.

If you have a (andriod) smart phone install the "sky map" app. Once you calibrate the compass on the smart phone and point your phone at the sky (screen facing you) it will show the stars you are looking at with named planets etc. in the current positions in the sky.

Yes. It is obvious in a small scope. It was very pretty tonight with saturns rings and the belts and Galilean satellites of Jupiter clearly visible in anything that can deliver 20x magnification.

Both planets in the same field of view for a couple of days either side of the closest approach so worth a look low in the SW skies just after sunset if you have any kind of small telescope or binoculars.

Mars is the bright red thing higher in the sky.

They will be slightly closer together tomorrow. BTW it is strictly an appulse when they are closest together and a conjunction when they have the same right ascension (sort of thing Astrologers obsess about)

Sorry, but from the time of your posting, nearly 3 hours since my observation at 5 PM, both will have set below the horizon.

Which is "perzackly" what I was using earlier having last month moved into the 21st century by getting a smart phone.

For some reason I have never been able to calibrate any compass on any smartphone to the things satisfaction. I follow the instructions, do the dance and it refuses to go tick.

Mine is a 1+ 7T and after a few seconds' of that dance works OK.

Just make sure you don't end up in Bethlehem.

It works on iPhones.

Bill

The horizon being slighty more opaque than the clouds traditional for any interesting astromonical event?

#Paul