The crescent moon appears in the southwestern sky tonight and through the coming weekend. Tomorrow night, the moon appears right under the red planet Mars, now moving into the zodiacal constellation Leo. You can follow the moon into the coming week. From Mars, the moon moves east towards the bright star Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation. The Moon and Regulus are almost close to touch on Sunday night.

Say Goodbye to Jupiter

Beginning this weekend we'll all see a shift to more extreme tides and it is all tied to two astronomical events. Next week, the moon will both be close and also reach the New Moon phase.

There are two visible planets in the evening sky and two visible in the morning sky. The planets Jupiter and Mars appear in the western sky after sunset with Jupiter being the closest to the horizon. Jupiter is brilliant and easy to find, residing in the setting zodiacal constellation Taurus. Don't wait too long. The planet sets around 10 p.m.

Mars may be your easiest find, as it is a good deal higher in the western sky. The planet is in the zodiacal constellation Cancer and doesn't set until well after midnight.

Tonight's gibbous moon appears near the bright star Spica. The two are a close pair in the zodiacal constellation Virgo, a constellation we associate with spring. The moon moves from Virgo into the constellation Libra and will be full on Monday.

We call this phase the Honey Moon and its brilliance will dominate the night through the coming week.

Northern Lights

The waxing crescent moon appears near the bright red planet Mars tomorrow (Saturday) night.

The evening planets available for viewing are Jupiter and Mars. Jupiter is appearing in the western sky after sunset. The planet is in the zodiacal constellation Taurus, the bull. The planet is above the head of the bull and between the bull's horns. Jupiter won't be with us for very long. We've only got a couple of weeks to see it. Each night ahead, it appears lower in the western sky.

The Lyrid Meteor shower is a favorite for spring. For the first time we have a meteor shower that isn't happening in the depths of winter. It is spring, and we can all go outside and enjoy this important shower. The time to look for meteors at their peak is Monday night and well into the early hours of Tuesday morning. This is a popular shower if only for the convenience of better night temperatures.

Sunday night's full moon, the Daffodil Moon, will be one of the smallest full moons of the year. Can you tell? We often hear stories about a large moon and it being some kind of significant event. When the moon is close, large and full it has a big impact on our changing tides. There is magic associated with a large full moon.

Tomorrow Saturday night, the gibbous moon appears in close proximity to the the bright red planet Mars. The two are in the zodiacal constellation Gemini. Mars has lost a lot of its brilliance from just a few months ago. Mars is getting farther away from us, over 100,000 miles away now and that distance is growing, thus it is getting dimmer.

Mars and the Moon are a nice looking assembly. You'll have no trouble noticing Mars with its reddish glow. Not far away are the two brightest stars in Gemini, Pollux and Castor. Pollux is the closest to the moon and the brighter of the two.

A popular spring constellation, easy to find, is Boötes, the shepherd. The large constellation is rising in the north east after sunset. The arrangement of stars looks like a large kite, though it depicts a shepherd. The bright orange star Arcturus is at the bottom of the kite, where one might attach a tail.