Dance of the Planets

Skywatchers have enjoyed watching the dance of the planets against the backdrop of the stars for thousands of years. If you make a habit of looking up and noticing, you can track the passage of time as the planets appear to move night by night through familiar constellations. You have probably noticed the blazing-bright Venus in the west, and maybe red-orange Mars nearby. Jupiter is getting easier to see, Saturn is up before sunrise, and Mercury is rejoining the dance soon! Read on to learn how to find the planets in our night sky. 

Venus and Earth are getting to their closest points, so Venus is looking incredibly bright in our sky. It will also be rapidly disappearing from the evening sky. Look for bright Venus in th west as soon as dusk falls. By next week, Venus will be getting hard to see in the evening. 

Mars is not nearly as bright, because it is much farther from Earth than Venus right now, and also doesn't have Venus' size or think atmosphere. You can spot it in the west as soon as it is dark - look for a red-orange object. 

Jupiter has been visible in the wee hours of the morning for several months now, but it is just starting to beome visible in the evening sky. Look for the bright planet in the east, rising at about 10 PM, near the bright star Spica. Tonight, the Moon happens to be right next door. 

Saturn is also visible, rising at about 4 AM and visible until sunrise. Look for it in the southeast, in the constellation of Sagittarius, and near Scorpius. Saturn will be visible in the evening all summer long.

 
Finally, Mercury will be joining Mars in the west by the end of the month. Mercury is always faint and harder to see, so you might need to use a pair of binoculars and star map to find it. 

Good luck finding the planets and tracking their motions as we move through the year. Skywatching is a great way to feel tied into the natural world. Remember, you can always learn what's up in the night sky in the Dome Planetarium at the Peoria Riverfront Museum, where we teach about space and science everyday. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter for daily updates!

 

Run the Planets! Don't miss our epic 5K.