SkyEye

The Calendar

The Solar System

The word planet is derived from the Greek word for 'wanderer'. Unlike the background stars, planets seem to move around the sky, keeping mostly to a narrow track called the ecliptic, the path of the Sun across the stars. Dwarf planets and small solar-system bodies, including comets, are not so constrained, often moving far above or below the ecliptic.

Sun Aquarius → Pisces

The solar south pole is most inclined toward the Earth early this month.

Mercury Capricornus → Aquarius → Pisces

The bright but elusive object is most easily seen from southern latitudes. It begins the month relatively high above the eastern horizon before sunrise but loses altitude rapidly as the month progresses. Northern hemisphere observers don't see such a sharp decline but Mercury is low in the sky to begin with and is lost to view before the end of the month.

Venus Pisces → Aries

The 'evening star' continues to climb higher in the western sky after sunset for northern hemisphere observers but the view is not nearly so good for those south of the equator.

Mars Pisces → Aries

The red planet is found low in the west, setting by mid-evening.

Jupiter Cancer

The largest planet in the solar system was at opposition last month so it is still up most of the night, setting ahead of sunrise.

Saturn Scorpius

Saturn passes from the morning to the evening sky, setting before midnight by the end of the month.

Uranus Pisces

This ice giant is getting increasingly difficult to see in the evening twilight as it approaches conjunction with the Sun next month.

Neptune Aquarius

A small telescope is necessary to view the most distant planet in the solar system but potential observers won't get much joy this month. Neptune was at solar conjunction in February and is lost in the morning twilight.