SUNSET: 
Aurora Season Is Underway
These are the nights to get ready for the auroras — and tonight may be your lucky night. Not only is the current solar cycle swiftly intensifying, March is one of the best times of the year to see the northern lights.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 24 – March 5
Venus and Jupiter, the two brightest celestial objects after the Sun and the Moon, shine together in the western twilight before, during, and after their March 1st conjunction.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 17 – 26
Venus and Jupiter put on a dramatic show in twilight, as they creep toward each other for a March 1st conjunction. The crescent Moon passes though, almost kissing Jupiter on Wednesday the 22nd.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 10 – 19
Comet ZTF is fading and receding into the distance. On the other hand, it's now conveniently placed high overhead in early evening in a moonless sky; the waning Moon doesn't rise until late.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, February 3 – 12
Comet ZTF is still near its brightest, moonlight and all. Around the Big and Little Dog Stars, trace out the stick-figure patterns of the big and little dogs. A ghostly unicorn haunts the inside of the Winter Triangle.
See Comet ZTF (C/2022 E3) Dash Between Big and Little Dippers
Forget the hype and go outside to enjoy the real thing — a relatively bright comet you can see in binoculars from a dark sky.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, January 27 – February 5
Comet ZTF is at its best this week — but every night moonlight encroaches on the scene until a later and later hour. Along the way, the Moon occults Mars for the southern U.S. and again forms isosceles triangles with naked-eyestars.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, January 20 – 29
Venus and Saturn have a close conjunction in twilight. Comet ZTF heads into its best week. And Betelgeuse overtakes Sirius ever earlier in the night.
See a Giant Sunspot!
If you have a solar filter, check out the sunspot group AR 3190 that's crossing the solar disk this week.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, January 13 – 21
Saturn starts the week well above bright Venus in twilight. Watch them close in on each other toward their conjunction on the 22nd. Jupiter and fading Mars shine high. Sirius sparkles below Orion, and binocular Comet ZTF enters its best three weeks.
Solar and Lunar Eclipses in 2023
Although no total lunar eclipses occur this year, skywatchers can look forward to two “central” solar eclipses — including an annular event in October whose path runs from Oregon through Texas.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, January 6 – 14
Saturn approaches Venus in twilight, Jupiter and Mars ride high, and Mare Orientale peeks around the edhe of the Moon. And, try exploring the many double stars in Orion's Sword.
What to Look For & When During a Total Solar Eclipse
Look for these astronomical and Earthbound phenomena during the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 30 – January 7
Venus creeps up, Saturn sinks down; in three weeks the two shall meet. The Moon meets Mars Tuesday. Orion comes into his own to rule the winter, and Sirius emerges below him.
The Best Meteor Showers in 2023
The two richest, most reliable annual meteor showers, the Perseids and Geminids, are Moon-free in 2023. Others showers await you too.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 23 – 31
Venus and Mercury glimmer low in the southwest in twilight. The newborn crescent Moon starts the week with them, then visits Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars as it waxes toward full.
All Eight Planets Line Up ... Again!
Echoing summer's great arc of planets at dawn, winter presents the full octet again, this time splayed across the evening sky.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 16 – 24
The Pleiades dipper, the House in the Hyades, Mars high but fading, M31 at the zenith, and a celestial string of holiday lights.
Catch the Geminid Meteor Shower; Plus, Watch RW Cephei Fade
The luminous Geminid meteor shower returns. We also meet a binocular-bright star that may be experiencing Betelgeuse-like convulsions.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 9 – 16
Mars, just past opposition, remains bright as it aligns between Aldebaran and Capella. Jupiter shines highest after dusk. And watch for the Geminid meteors.
