The constellation Cancer the Crab is faint, the faintest constellation of the zodiac. Yet the bright moon on March 17, 2019 can help you locate it.

The ecliptic – sun and moon’s path, marked in green on our chart – cuts through the Winter Circle. So, every month the Circle is visible, the moon sweeps through these stars.

The Summer Triangle’s 3 brilliant stars – Vega, Deneb and Altair – are up before dawn in March, before midnight in May and at dusk on the summer solstice. Right now, they’re in the east before sunup, near Venus!

Epsilon Aurigae’s light dims for a period of about 2 years, in a 27-year cycle. The star’s last dimming was from 2009 to 2011.

The 2 outer stars in the Big Dipper’s bowl point to the North Star, aka Polaris. Give it a try.

Before going to bed tonight, locate the Big Dipper in your northern sky, and then follow the arc in the Dipper’s handle to find yellow-orange star Arcturus.

From the Northern Hemisphere, look after true darkness falls for the elusive zodiacal light. It appears as a hazy pyramid of light extending up from the sunset point. Southern Hemisphere? Look before dawn!

The 2 outermost stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper always point to the North Star, aka Polaris. That’s why astronomers call these stars The Pointers.

First, find the M- or W-shaped constellation Cassiopeia. The Double Cluster – 2 open star clusters – is nearby and beautiful in a dark sky.

Lepus the Hare and Columba the Dove are 2 faint constellations near the easy-to-find constellation Orion. You need a dark sky to see them.

The 4 stars of the Great Square of Pegasus are easy to find. Ready? Let’s star-hop!

It’s identifiable by Orion’s Belt, 3 medium-bright stars in a short, straight row at the mid-section of the Hunter.

Go outside, and look for the waxing gibbous moon tonight. Then notice the stars nearby. Tonight’s moon is within the Winter Circle stars.

Will you see the red star Aldebaran – Eye of the Bull in Taurus – in the moon’s glare January 16 or 17? Plus … the story of Aldebaran when it was part of a double pole star.

The sky’s brightest star, Sirius aka the Dog Star, will come to within 1.6 degrees of the south celestial pole in the year 66270.