An annual meteor shower, three great planets all visible right after sunset, with visits from the Moon, a space launch, and a night where many people are out make October of 2021 a wonderful month for getting out with or without your telescope.
Three great planets all visible right after sunset, with visits from the Moon, make September of 2021 a calm, but convenient month for breaking out that telescope.
August is good for two things in the sky: bright planets and bright meteors. Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter reign supreme this month, with the annual Perseid Meteor Shower heating things up with spectacular observing conditions for mid-month.
Like fireworks, July is mostly quiet and dull, but the noisy and bright events really make it worthwhile. We have two pairs of planets, visible during opposite times in opposite places, and surreptitious visits from the Moon.
An annular solar eclipse, Mars passing through an open cluster, and plenty of lunar close encounters makes June of 2021 an exciting month for astronomy. More with @MrWebbPV at #365DaysOfAstro
A total lunar eclipse if you’re lucky, a great apparition of Mercury, and all the naked-eye planets visible make May of 2021 an action-packed month.
April of 2021 delivers a few mornings and a few evenings of lunar close encounters, as well as a meteor shower, as we stay up later to get those dark skies.
The sunshine is coming! March may be bringing some shorter nights and daylight savings time, but the sunshine and warmth during the daytime is very much appreciated! This month Mars dominates the evening sky with Taurus and the Pleiades, and Saturn, Jupiter, and Mercury dance in the morning twilight.
February only gets exciting in the last week with a 3-planet conjunction, although the still very long nights and the dominating presence of Orion make it a good opportunity for constellation hunting.
CONJUNCTION MONTH! If there’s nothing else you do this month, mark your calendar, get your warm clothes set aside, and get ready for a very, very rare conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn on the 21st.