Today:
Vega, the brightest star visible this evening, starts this night high in the west at 6 o’clock, and takes its time lowering through the northwest all evening, not setting until 2 o’clock tomorrow morning. Vega is bright, in part, because it is one of the closer stars to us, some 26 light years away, as well as cranking out 47 times as much light as our Sun.
Sunday:
Late this evening, the waning Gibbous Moon, one day from its Last Quarter, works its way above the east-northeast horizon in the company of Jupiter to its lower right, somewhat subdued by the Moon’s glare. You’ll find the pair one third of the way up, and due east, at midnight. Even more subdued by the Moon will be the star Pollux, otherwise the brighter “head” of the Gemini Twins, appearing just above and to the Moon’s left. The other “head,” Castor, appears a little farther above.
Monday:
The Big Dipper runs as low as it gets along the northern horizon. At 7:30 PM EST, the right edge of the “bowl” of the Dipper is exactly above north. Follow the line formed by these two stars, the “pointer stars”, and they will guide you up to the North Star, Polaris, located half way between the horizon and the zenith.