On the nights of January 30 and 31, 2023, watch for the moon near red Mars from dusk until after midnight. The bright red star Aldebaran is also nearby.
The Venus and Saturn conjunction brings these 2 worlds closest on January 22, 2023. Look west as soon as the sky darkens. Venus is the very bright one!
No matter where you live worldwide, look for the thin crescent moon near Mercury on the morning of January 19, 2023. The fiery red star Antares is nearby.
Venus and Mercury pair up on the evenings of December 28 an 29, 2022. After sunset, start watching in the sunset direction for Venus, then look for Mercury nearby.
Look for a slender waxing crescent moon near Saturn on the evenings of December 25 and 26, 2022. Saturn is in the dim constellation Capricornus the Sea Goat.
Marcy Curran has enjoyed star gazing since she was a young girl going on family camping trips under the dark skies of Wyoming. She bought her first telescope in time to see Halley’s comet in 1985 on its way in to another close encounter with the sun. Her passion for astronomy eventually led her to being a co-founder of a local astronomical society. Marcy remains active in her astronomy club including being the editor of a monthly newsletter. She also contributes a monthly article to her local newspaper focusing on the stars, planets and objects currently visible in the nighttime sky. Marcy taught astronomy at her local community college for over 20 years. Marcy retired in December 2021 and is delighted to join Earthsky.org as an editor of night sky articles. Her hobbies - other than star gazing - include reading, knitting, jigsaw puzzles and photography. Marcy and her husband live in Wyoming.