On Tuesday and Wednesday nights a thin crescent moon is in proximity to the bright planets Venus and Jupiter. The three are low in the southwestern sky right after sunset and available for viewing for a short time.

Tuesday is the earliest view and the most challenging. A thin crescent moon appears just above the horizon after sunset, right under and to the right of the two planets. You'll need an unobscured view of the western horizon to see the three. A more likely time to look is Wednesday night, when the moon is considerably higher and closest to the planet Jupiter. Venus is the brighter of the two planets. And we've been watching as the two planets have gotten closer and closer together. They are all in the zodiacal constellation Pisces.

Thursday night will be a nice night to look too. The moon's sunny face will have grown and it will be high above the two planets.

Extreme Tides This Weekend

Tides will run remarkably high and low this weekend and it is all due to astronomy. The moon will be both in the New Moon phase on Monday, and in perigee on Sunday. With the moon being closer than usual, plus pulling from the same area of the sky as our sun, the gravitational pull will be more than normal.

This kind of event occurs only a few times during the year. Call it a spring tide. The best evidence of the gravitational pull will be along our shore. The wrackline on the beach will be higher than normal. Sandbars that are usually hidden below the surface will appear at time of lowest tide.