Venus is ever so quickly slipping closer to the western horizon each night. The brightest planet that looks like an airplane approaching with landing lights has dropped considerably in the last few weeks. It will drop even more in March.

Venus is closest to the Earth on March 22, when it moves from our evening sky into our morning sky. Astronomers call this close approach: inferior conjunction. On a rare occasion, the planet passed right in front of the Sun while it traveled its orbit. We watched it, on June 5, 2012. The observation required a solar telescope and it won't happen again this century.

At its closest, the planet will only be 38 million miles away, before it scoots ahead of the Earth in its race around the Sun. The planet will appear through spring in the early morning sky.

Enjoy these last few evenings when you can find Venus.