Winter nights come early this time of year because the Sun appears to set (and does) quite early each day. Earth’s tilt has brought winter to the Northern Hemisphere. But early winter sunsets bring nice views of several planets this month.

On January 1st, Venus dazzles in the south-western sky 25 minutes after sunset. Meanwhile, Saturn, gradually appearing to descend toward twilight all month, will be seen just above the much brighter Venus on January 22nd. This close conjunction is a “must see” event this month! Saturn will be behind the Sun to our line of sight next month, but will re-emerge to us in the morning sky later this year.

If you have binoculars look just right of Venus on January 1st, 25 minutes after sunset, to catch a glimpse of Mercury. Mercury’s orbit will bring it into the morning eastern sky by mid-month. On January 19th look for it just a bit east (left) of the waning crescent Moon. Between January 25th and 31st, Mercury brightens and gains altitude among the stars of Sagittarius around 6:45 am (EST) (local time) in the south-east.

Jupiter is bright in the southwest evening sky all month. A 4 day old crescent Moon passes just below the planet on January 25th. Mars shines brightly high up among the stars of Taurus just a bit east (left) of the Pleiades (open star cluster). The waxing gibbous Moon and Mars are close to each other on January 30th.

The Quadrantids meteor shower, normally a usually good winter event is affected this year by the Full Moon on January 6th. The Quadrantids (named after a now defunct constellation) are found in what is now the constellation Bootes (warrior/herdsman), and peak on January 3rd/4th. Though the hourly rate of meteors average 40 to 60 and sometimes reach 100, this month’s bright Moon will lower that number. Worth trying though; look east the morning of January 4th an hour before sunrise.

A busy month for sky-watchers this November is highlighted by a lunar eclipse, a good meteor shower, and a bonanza of bright planets in the evening sky.

The full moon is totally eclipsed in the early morning hours of November 8th. Though favored viewing locations lie in the western United States, we in the East will see the eclipsed Moon setting in the west as morning twilight will prevent us from seeing the later stages of totality. (The Midwest and western half of the USA will enjoy most of totality in full darkness). The Moon will enter the dark inner shadow of Earth (the umbra) at 4:10 am EST, with totality beginning at 5:16 am. However with sunrise at 6:41 am, after the first hour we will only have a god 30 to 46 minutes of fairly dark sky (looking westward) to observe the eclipse.

Lunar eclipses are easy to watch because not optical aid is necessary, and no eye protection is required. You can stare at it all you want. So get up a little early on November 8th to enjoy it before work or school; and before the Moon sets.

The Leonid meteor shower peaks between 3 and 5 am on November 17 and 18. The Leonids are well-known for producing very bright meteors, or fireballs, and for meteors which produce long visible streams as they burn up in our atmosphere. So it is always worthwhile looking; even this year, when a waning crescent Moon’s light will make it a little harder to spot them.

Saturn is very prominent in the south sky and is best seen as soon as it is fully dark. It sets around midnight. On November 1st Saturn may be seen just above the 1st quarter Moon. Jupiter is also up all evening, much brighter and to the left (east) of Saturn. On November 4th the waxing gibbous Moon will be just to Jupiter’s lower left. Both of these gas giant planets are still at their best for seeing loads of surface features to see through any backyard telescope. Sky-watchers with scopes should spend time with both this month.

Mars is approaching its December opposition when it will be at its closest to Earth since 2020 (50 million miles on December 1st). It will be due south and highest in the sky around midnight. The gibbous Moon will be close to Mars on November 11th. Through telescopes and when close, Mars reveals icy polar caps, a deep grand canyon, huge volcanic mountains, and long waving ridges through the desert regions of the planet.

Mercy and Venus are both too close to the Sun to be seen this month. But on the morning of the Moon eclipse, if we look at it with binoculars, we might be able to spot the planet Uranus, sitting just above the Moon at the 11 o’clock spot as if the Moon were a clock’s face. Try it!

Jupiter reaches opposition on September 26th placing it due east as the Sun sets in the west. They are opposite each other as seen by us on Earth. This places Jupiter at its closest point to Earth since last year. Jupiter appears as the brightest object in the night sky after the Moon.

Any sky-watcher with a telescope will find magnificent features revealed viewing Jupiter with its colorful cloud-banded atmosphere. We can also see the changing positions of its 4 large Galilean Moons as they circle the giant planet in orbits ranging from 2 to 16 days.

Saturn now a month past its own opposition reaches its highest point in the southern sky by local midnight. Of course its wonderful ring system is revealed through telescopes, and its own cloudy atmosphere, similar though dimmer than Jupiter’s, may be seen. Look on September 7 and 8 as the gibbous Moon will be seen nearby.

Mars, the reddish planet, will be seen near the reddish star Aldebaran, the brightest star in Taurus the bull this month. Mars is the brighter of the the two objects, which rise in the East just before midnight. They will be seen best in the hour or two just before dawn. Mars itself will reach opposition in December when Earth and Mars will be at their closest in over 2 years.

Venus remains very bright in the eastern sky before dawn but is harder to see because its orbit is swinging it in toward the Sun, and therefore, its altitude is quite low. So look for in the first half of September before it gets too low.
Full Moon is on September 10th. The Autumnal Equinox occurs on September 22nd. Day light hours and night-time hours are about equal at this time, and the Fall season officially begins. Day length will continue to decrease for the next few months as we move toward Winter Solstice in December; just before Christmas.

The pre-dawn planet show we sky-watchers have been enjoying in June will continue into July, but some changes are on the way as we progress through the month. Mercury’s orbit will swing it past the Sun where it will emerge on the other side of our star between July 25th to the 29th. Look for Mercury in the west around 8:30 pm on the 29th when it lies just below and left of a crescent Moon. The combination of the orbital movements of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn; and also that of Earth, will cause these planets to appear to rise sooner, although still in the very late evening or very early morning eastern skies.

Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are all moving toward opposition later this year when they will all be at their closest to Earth and at their greatest brightness in over a year.

Saturn rises before 11 pm in early July and from 1 am to dawn will be favorably placed for viewing. Saturn brightens this month and telescopic views will be great; its rings system tilted 13 degrees to our line of sight. Saturn will be just above and left of the waning gibbous Moon on July 15th.

Jupiter rises just after midnight on July 1st and an hour before on July 31st. It brightens too in July. Best views occur in the hours just before dawn when it will be the highest in the sky, and telescopic views will reveal many surface features, while binoculars will show its 4 brightest Moons as jewels on either side of the giant planet.

Mars rises around 2 am in the east and slowly brightens throughout the month. Mars will still appear small even in telescopes, but when at opposition in December it will be more than 2 times bigger and much brighter. This will be something to look forward to seeing; a special holiday gift for us this year!

Venus dominates the eastern sky before dawn and appears close to a number of bright stars during the month as it moves along its orbit. Venus is just above Aldebaran (Taurus) on July 1st; passes just above Orion July 16 to 18; and just below a nice waning crescent Moon on July 26.

Earth reaches aphelion in its elliptical orbit; farthest point from the Sun on July 4th. July’s Full Moon is on the 13th.

All seven of the major planets will gather in the pre-dawn eastern sky this month. This is a relatively rare event, although I recall a similar line-up about 20 years ago, but in the early evening western sky.

On the morning of June 24th looking east about 1 hour before sunrise, the 5 “naked eye” planets will span the eastern sky in order of distance from the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn will be seen, looking from left to right along a gently rising line of some 100 degrees along the ecliptic. The waning crescent Moon will also be nearby. All will be visible with the unaided eye.

Uranus and Neptune are also in the mix though binoculars will be needed to spot them. Uranus will be just east(left) of the Moon, and Neptune will be just west (right) of Jupiter. Mercury (magnitude +0.5) will be lowest to the horizon, and Venus (magn. –3.9) will be above and right. The Moon will be next in line mid-way from Venus toward the next planet, Mars (magn. +0.5). Jupiter (magn. –2.4) is next, followed by Saturn (magn. +0.4). These magnitudes (brightness) will help sky-watchers pin-point each planet. Also on the mornings before and after June 24th, the Moon will be closer to Mars or Venus respectively.

With no planets visible in the evening it is worth while to look at the Moon. A two day old crescent Moon will be just below the 2 brightest stars in Gemini; Castor and Pollux, just after sunset on June 1st. On June 5th the Moon will be near Regulus; Leo’s brightest star. The gibbous Moon is close to Spica (in Virgo) on June 9th, and the Full Moon is June 14th.

Saturn will be best viewed an hour before sunrise when it is at its highest in the sky. Jupiter, also well up then, offers the most visible surface details for those with telescopes. Mars’s surface features remain challenging even in telescopes this month even as it brightens. Venus is brightest of all, and on June 26th the Pleiades star cluster may be seen just above Venus and Mercury.

Overall June will be an excellent month for sky-watchers to enjoy!

A TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE MOON is the highlight for Sky-Watchers in May this year, occurring on the evening of May 15th and the early morning hours of May 16th across the USA! Meanwhile there will be plenty of planet activity in the eastern early morning skies before sunrise for us to enjoy. East coast observers will see the entire eclipse in a dark sky, while in the Mid-West, the Full Moon will rise already partially inside the Earth’s shadow.

The Moon enters the deep umbra part of Earth’s shadow at 10:27 pm EDT. The first sign of the eclipse will be a grayish creep across the Moon giving way to a reddish-orange coloring. Totality (Moon completely inside Earth’s shadow)will last from 11:29 pm to 12:53 am EDT (85 minutes long). Mid-totality is at 12:11 am EDT (May 16th). Partial phases last until 1:55 am EDT. (Remember Central time zones times are an hour earlier.)

Make plans to check out this eclipse several times during the 3 hour 25 minute total length of it to enjoy the fullness of it! We will have plenty of time to do so —– so long as skies are clear!

A decent Eta Aquariid meteor shower peaks on the morning of May 4th, looking east around 4 am. The radiant (from where meteors appear to come) remains low, so fewer meteors may be seen this year because of approaching dawn, but take a look anyway. Ten to twenty meteors, very fast moving, may be expected to be seen per hour.

Saturn rises around 3 am in early May and by 1 am at the end of the month. It is in good position to be seen easily in the southeast sky an hour before dawn. The Moon will be just below the ringed planet on May 22nd.

Mars is up by 4 am on May 1st and by 3 am on May 31st. Mars, which is brightening, will be very close to much brighter Jupiter on the morning of May 25, with the Moon passing just below the pair of planets. On May 29th Mars will be just below Jupiter around 5 am in the eastern sky. Jupiter will also appear close to Venus in early May. Venus, often called “the morning star,” is the brighter of the two planets, and is the brightest object in the sky after the Moon and Sun all month. (Jupiter is next brightest).

April, the first full month of spring, beckons sky-watchers to rise early to catch some fine planetary action before dawn all month. The LYRID meteor shower will also put on a decent show around mid-April. MERCURY will give us its best evening appearance of 2022, and a spectacular conjunction of Venus and Jupiter will occur on April 30.

Mercury rises higher above the western horizon all month, becoming an easy object to spot by April 16th. Mercury will remain above the western horizon for 75 minutes after sunset. We will be able to see the soft glow of the PLEIADES star cluster above Mercury. By April 27 to 29 Mercury’s motion will close the gap so that it will be seen just below the Pleiades.

All other planets will be seen in the eastern sky before dawn. Jupiter will already be visible when Mars rises around 5 am local time during the first week of the month. Saturn and Venus will arrive about 2 hours before sunrise; with Venus being the brightest and therefore easiest to see. Saturn will be to the right and just below Venus, and Mars (the dimmest), will be to Saturn’s upper right. On April 5th, Mars and Saturn will be so close as to almost touch one another.

Venus will start to move away from (to the left) Mars and Saturn during the next two weeks of April, and by April 24th, the waning crescent Moon will be seen below Saturn; and below Mars on the 25th, and below Venus on the 26th. On April 27th, look for the Moon below Jupiter, with Venus just to right of the giant planet.

The grand finale of the April planet show will be on the 30th. Jupiter and Venus, the two brightest planets in the solar system as seen from Earth, will be seen less than the width of the Moon apart!! Though there will be more Jupiter/Venus conjunctions over the next few years, but none this close will happen until November of 2039!!

This month’s annual meteor shower, the Lyrids, peaks on the night of April 16th. Look to the eastern sky two-thirds of the way up from horizon to zenith around 3 to 4 am. After this, the rising waning gibbous Moon will brighten the skies making it harder to see meteors. At best, we can expect 15 to 20 meteors per hour.

April’s Full Moon is April 16th; one day before Easter!

Our night sky begins to tell us that spring is just around the corner as Zodiac constellation, LEO, appears well up in our east-southeastern skies in early to mid-March. Leo is a fairly bright constellation recognized by a “backwards” question mark front end, and a triangle-shaped back end. First magnitude star, REGULUS, is at the bottom of the question mark.

Spring begins officially on March 20th at 11:33 am EDT. (the Vernal Equinox). For several days around this date day-time and night-time hours are nearly equal. (about 12 hours each). Day length will gradually increase going forward into the next months.

Ground Hog Day, February 2nd, marked the exact mid-point between the Winter Solstice (December) and the Vernal Equinox. Though the Ground Hog and his shadow (seen or un-seen) has no astronomical significance, many ancient cultures recognized February 2nd as important. It told them that winter was half gone and that the warmer spring and higher Sun were drawing near.

All visible planets will be found in our eastern skies before dawn this month. Venus dominates as the brightest; rising a full 2 hours before the Sun. Mars comes up a half hour later in early March and the two seem to draw quite close. Saturn is up a little bit later, and by mid month a triangle will be formed with Venus at the top, Mars to bottom right, and Saturn to bottom left.

The best scene of the month brings all three planets and a 26 day old waning crescent Moon together. On March 28th the Moon will be just below Mars, while Venus and Saturn will be close to each other and only 6 degrees above the Moon. Binoculars should capture them all in one field of view, 30 to 40 minutes before sunrise.

Full Moon this month will be on March 18th.

Jupiter approaches conjunction with the Sun this month, but before it does, we can still spot it low in the western sky for an hour after sunset during the first week of February. As of February 4th, Saturn is in conjunction with the Sun, so it is already our of sight. But it will re-appear in the morning eastern sky by the end of February.

All other planet action takes place in the pre-dawn eastern sky.

Venus will be unusually bright during the first half of February making it impossible to miss. Its extra brightness is due to its elliptical orbit bringing it closer to Earth than usual. (38 million miles compared to 43 million miles). It will be up two hours before the Sun.

Mars, though much fainter, joins Venus beginning on February 9th just below and to the right of it. On February 27th the waning crescent Moon may be seen below and right of Mars.

Mercury is also visible an hour before sunrise to the east (left) of Mars from February 15th to February 28th. Saturn joins the planet group at the end of February appearing very low and to the left of Mercury.

Binoculars will help us to see all 4 planets and the crescent Moon before sunrise on the last 3 days of the month. Looking ahead to March will find Jupiter joining the 4 planets, so that during the first week of March there will be 5 planets spanning some 50 degrees of our sky along the path of the zodiac (ecliptic)!

February Full Moon is on the 16th. Meanwhile, continue to look south all month and enjoy the bright winter constellations encircling Orion. Included in those 6 constellations are 8 of the top 20 brightest stars in the sky!