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 Aries → Taurus

The equation of time reaches a local maximum of over three and a half minutes on 14 May.

Mercury Taurus

Rising high in the west after sunset when viewed from northern latitudes, Mercury soon vanishes in the glow of sunset as it plunges back towards the Sun and inferior conjunction on the penultimate day of the month.

Venus Taurus → Gemini

The brilliant evening star reaches its maximum altitude for northern hemisphere observers but the planet will continue to climb higher above the sunset horizon over the next few months for those viewing it from the southern hemisphere.

Mars Aries → Taurus

The red planet is vanishing in the sunset twilight as it heads towards conjunction with the Sun next month.

Jupiter Cancer

Quadrature is an excellent time to observe the gas giants as the interplay of shadows between the planets and their satellites is at its most pronounced. Jupiter reaches east quadrature on the fourth day of the month so look for it in early evening; it sets before midnight by the end of May.

Saturn Scorpius

The ringed wonder is at opposition on 23 May, leaving it available for observing the entire night this month.

Uranus Pisces

Occulted during daylight hours on 15 May by the Moon, this ice giant is probably still too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Neptune Aquarius

A small telescope is necessary to view the most distant planet in the solar system. At quadrature on 31 May, it rises well before the Sun by the end of the month.