SUNSET: 
S&T's Audio Sky Tour for March 2010
What a difference a month makes! The lengthening days, together with a switch to daylight time, mean that the evening constellations are changing rapidly. Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (6.5MB MP3 download: running time: 6m 52s)
Tour March's Sky! | February 25th, 2010
What a difference a month makes! The lengthening days, together with a switch to daylight time, mean that the evening constellations are changing rapidly. So use this easy-to-follow audio tour to figure out what's what. Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (6.5MB MP3 download: running time: 6m 52s)
Sky at a Glance | February 19th, 2010
Mars is high in the evening sky below Pollux and Castor. It's starting to fade and shrink a bit, but it's in best view for your scope earlier in the evening now.
Sky at a Glance | February 12th, 2010
Mars is high in the evening sky, still bright but starting to fade and shrink. Asteroid 4 Vesta is brightest and closest to Earth this week. And Venus and Jupiter have a challenging conjunction just above the west-southwest horizon after sunset.
Sky at a Glance | February 5th, 2010
Mars, just past opposition and still blazing brightly, rises higher in the east each evening. And Saturn is now up in the east by about 10 p.m.
Tour February's Sky! | January 30th, 2010
Say "goodbye" to Jupiter and "hello" to Mars, as the midwinter evening skies come alive with activity. Learn to identify what stargazers call the Winter Hexagon, and much more. Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (3.9MB MP3 download: running time: 4m 8s)
Sky at a Glance | January 29th, 2010
Fiery Mars, at opposition, shines as brightly as icy Sirius. Catch Jupiter departing low in twilight. And Saturn is now up in the east by 10 or 11 p.m.
Occultation Web Resources
Occultations of stars and planets by the Moon and asteroids are exciting to watch, and amateur occultation timings can have real scientific value. But first you need to know what occultations will be happening in your area.
Sky at a Glance | January 22nd, 2010
This week Mars comes to opposition and passes closest to Earth, shining its brightest in the evening sky. Meanwhile, Jupiter slinks offstage low in the southwest.
Sky at a Glance | January 14th, 2010
Jupiter remains an eye-catcher as twilight fades, but it sinks low and sets early in the evening. Meanwhile Mars climbs high in the eastern sky during evening, shining nearly its brightest of the year.
Sky at a Glance | January 8th, 2010
Jupiter sinks lower at dusk, Mars rises earlier and earlier, Mercury begins to emerge in the dawn, and the Rabbit's Ruby reaches its maximum brightness.
Sky at a Glance | January 1st, 2010
The waning Moon passes Mars and Regulus, Orion climbs higher, and Auriga rules the late-evening zenith. And this week the year's latest sunrises happen for mid-northern latitudes — near Earth's perihelion date, by pure coincidence.
S&T's Audio Sky Tour for Janaury 2010
Midwinter evening skies are alive with celestial activity — after sunset you'll find Jupiter in the southwest, and Orion, Mars, and much more over in the east.Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (5.9MB MP3 download: running time: 6m 27s)
Tour January's Sky! | December 31st, 2009
Midwinter evening skies are alive with celestial activity — after sunset you'll find Jupiter in the southwest, and Orion, Mars, and much more over in the east.Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (5.9MB MP3 download: running time: 6m 27s)
The Pocket Sky Atlas
Compact, convenient, inexpensive, yet amazingly detailed, Sky & Telescope's Pocket Sky Atlas is a runaway favorite among stargazers.
Sky at a Glance | December 18th, 2009
The crescent Moon points to Mercury in the sunset, then goes by Jupiter. And Jupiter has a conjunction of its own with Neptune.
Sky at a Glance | December 11th, 2009
The Big Dipper is at its lowest in the north in early evening. Mercury is looking good in twilight. Neptune is nearing conjunction with Jupiter. And you may still catch a few stray meteors from the Geminid shower.
Sky at a Glance | December 4th, 2009
Watch for Mercury to emerge low in the sunset this week, and watch for Sirius-rise after dinnertime on the other side of the sky. And get ready for the Geminid meteors, soon to arrive.
Sky at a Glance | November 27th, 2009
The waning gibbous Moon shines near Castor and Pollux in Gemini on Thursday and Friday evenings. Meanwhile Jupiter, edging farther from Earth every week, still shines high in the south in twilight. The Pleiades sparkle in the east after dark, Orion is well up by 9 p.m., Mars rises by 10, and Saturn rises around 2 a.m.
