Venus is still a bright morning star, but now rising only shortly before the sun. Mars shines out in the constellation Cancer in the eastern night sky. Jupiter is now very much an evening object, in Capricornus, low down in the south-west as seen from the Northern Hemisphere.

Saturn is in the eastern morning sky, further out from the sun than Venus. It is in the right-hand part of the constellation Virgo as seen from the UK.  It is brighter than the stars of the region, but not yet as bright as Spica, the main star of Virgo.

On the night of 8/9 Nov, the waning moon is near Mars and on the mornings of 12 and 13 Nov, it is to the south of Saturn. If you have binoculars look out on 13th November between 5pm and 7pm. The moon passes across the Pleidaes cluster. This is commonly called the Seven Sisters but there are actually hundreds of stars visible through binoculars.

On 15 Nov, the very old crescent is in the pre-dawn twilight with Venus. If you like shooting stars look out for the Leonid meteors on 17th and 18th November. The shooting stars appear to come from the constellation Leo, although they are just dust entering earth’s atmosphere.

By the end of the lunar month, Venus disappears behind the sun, and into the dawn. Mars is growing gradually brighter in the late evening and morning sky.  Jupiter is in the evening sky in the constellation Capricornus. The waxing crescent moon is nearby on 23 Nov. On 30th November Jupiter and Venus are near each other, just 2 degrees apart. Saturn is in the morning sky on the Leo side of Virgo.

John McNally