The planet Venus reigns as the dazzling Morning Star. Tomorrow, it appears close to the right of the crescent Moon at dawn. Venus is the second planet from the Sun, while Earth is third. As a result, Venus passes closer to us than any other planet.
Weekly Stargazing Tips
Provided by StarDate.org. Unless otherwise specified, viewing times are local time regardless of time zone, and are good for the entire Lower 48 states (and, generally, for Alaska and Hawaii).
May 23: Moon and Venus
May 24: Taking a Leap
A gazelle leaps past the feet of the great bear. In ancient skylore it made three leaps, each marked by a pair of stars. The stars of the first jump are Alula Borealis and Alula Australis. As night falls, they are high in the northwest, far to the left of the Big Dipper.
May 25: Second Leap
The stars Tania Borealis and Tania Australis represent the second leap of the gazelle, from the skylore of Arabia. At nightfall, They are to the left of the stars that form the outer edge of the Big Dipper's bowl.
May 26: Lyra
One of the major beauties of the summer sky dangles in the northeast this evening like a piece of jewelry: the constellation Lyra. Its brightest star is Vega, which is the fifth-brightest star in the night sky. It sparkles like the diamond stud in an earring.
May 27: Milky Way
The subtle glow of the Milky Way hugs the eastern horizon in late evening. It will arc high overhead at first light tomorrow, stretching from northeast to southwest. The hazy band of stars outlines the flat disk of our home galaxy, the Milky Way.
May 28: Moon and Jupiter
Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, stands below the Moon in the early evening twilight. It looks like a bright star. Jupiter is so low in the sky, however, that you need a clear horizon to spot it.
May 29: Messier 13
The star cluster Messier 13 is in Hercules, which is high in the east at nightfall. Under dark skies, the cluster is just visible to the unaided eye. It looks like a faint, fuzzy star. M13 is about 25,000 light-years away. It contains up to 500,000 stars.