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Light Show In The Sky For October-November 2011
by Robert Wilkinson

Right now we have a great light show in the evening skies!

Mercury and Venus are both evening stars at this time of the year, and will be for several weeks to come. You can see Venus very clearly for the next few weeks just after sunset. At the same time, just below it you can see Mercury. The distance between the two will close between now and early November, when they will seem like "twinned stars" in the sunset sky.

Jupiter is about to become very bright as a "morning star" over the next month due to where it is relative to the Sun. It will be particularly bright in the Eastern sky at sunset during the coming New Moon on October 26-27, just as it will be every day through the time of the Moon conjunct Jupiter during the 19 Taurus-Scorpio Full Moon on November 10-11.

Very early risers will see reddish Mars in the Eastern skies from about 2:15 to 5 am from now through December. As the months roll on, Mars will be more elevated in the Eastern sky as the weeks move on, and by December Saturn will also be a "morning star" on the Eastern horizon beginning around 5 am.

All these times must be adjusted toward a couple of hours earlier in the Southern Hemisphere, since the Sun rises very early there in November and December. Anyway, a few things to keep in mind during the periods just before sunrise and just after sunset over the next few weeks. Enjoy the celestial light show!!

© Copyright 2011 Robert Wilkinson