#ThisWeekInastronomy

Earth’s satellite guides the way to the Red Planet in the early-morning sky, visible for a short time before sunrise.

Blazing planet Venus stands in line with the stars that mark the tips of Taurus the Bull’s horns this evening.

The Whirlpool Galaxy (M51) is a dazzling island universe you can explore from your backyard, interacting with NGC 5195.

Stars twinkle and sometimes appear to move around due to our atmosphere “scrambling” their light as it travels to our eyes.

Io and its shadow transit Jupiter overnight this evening, with different stages of the event visible across the U.S.

Although the Moon is bright, step outside early this morning to see if you can spot some fast-moving meteors left behind by Comet Halley.

Sliding through Virgo, asteroid Egeria passes close to a slightly brighter field star tonight, letting you clock its movement.

Don’t let the gibbous Moon stop you from taking in the best of this meteor shower when it peaks on May 5.

The brightest planet in the sky is located 6.5° due north of the red giant star Aldebaran in Taurus the Bull this evening.

Saturn reaches nearly 4° above the eastern horizon 45 minutes before sunrise, offering increasing chances to view it this month.

Venus and Jupiter are the top evening features, Saturn and Mars briefly appear before dawn, and Comet Tempel 2 is brightening.

Venus and Jupiter shine prominently in the northwest as the sky darkens, while Saturn rises before dawn and is climbing to offer better views.

Venus stands close to 4th-magnitude Kappa and Upsilon Tauri this evening, visible to the naked eye and wonderful through any optics.

The bright gas giant Jupiter is just a Full Moon’s width from the star Wasat in central Gemini this evening.

Observers in the western U.S. may be able to catch Ganymede’s reappearance early this morning, as it exits Jupiter’s long, dark shadow.