Tonight a thin waxing crescent moon appears low in the southwestern sky, right above the bright planet Venus. Both are in the zodical constellation Capricornus.

Tomorrow night, Saturday night, the moon has advanced along the zodiac and will appear close to the bright planet Saturn. Both are in Aquarius. The two are particularly close, and hard to notice. Earlier in the evening, in Europe, people will have watched the moon occult Saturn. They'll see the moon actually pass over Saturn. But for us on the Vineyard, that will already have happened.

This is the time to note how close Saturn and Venus are in the southwestern sky. The two will get even closer by mid-January. Venus will behave like a sentinel, a steady fixture in our evening sky. While Saturn will gradually appear each night, closer and closer to Venus. Saturn will actually pass by Venus on its way to setting earlier and earlier.

The moon is first quarter on Monday night.