A thin crescent moon will draw plenty of attention on Sunday night, when it appears right next to the bright planet Venus in our western sky. The two are only four degrees apart. Venus is almost sitting in the Moon’s lap.

Saturday night also offers a similar opportunity, but far less dramatic. An even thinner crescent moon appears lower, closer to the horizon, and right next to Mars. Saturday night is a harder event to watch, as both the Moon and Mars are so close to the horizon and visible only briefly. An observer has to pick an area on the Vineyard where the tree line or hills don’t interfere in the west, like East Chop, West Chop and Menemsha Beach. Mars and the Moon set together a short time afterwards.

Sunday night is a far easier show to watch. The crescent moon is higher and appearing right next to Venus. The two are in the constellation Aries, a zodiacal constellation we associate with early winter.

On Tuesday night, an even higher and brighter crescent moon appears near the bright orange star Aldebaran, in the zodiacal constellation Taurus.

On Thursday, the first quarter moon appears high in our early evening sky, in the zodiacal constellation Gemini.