Today:
The Twins of Gemini remain the hosts of the red planet Mars this month, though you can watch Mars drift to the left or east during the last two weeks of the month. Meanwhile, the waxing Gibbous Moon, well to the right of Mars and Gemini tonight, progresses east much more quickly, encountering Mars tomorrow night, just above our rusty-orange neighboring planet.
Saturday:
This evening Venus again emerges near the western horizon, but unlike last week’s conjunction with the Moon, this evening Venus joins Mercury, reaching its greatest separation from the Sun, placing it at its best for viewing. Mercury’s bright spark of light appears one hand-width to the lower left of Venus, starting near 6:20, best viewed from 6:30 to 6:40, getting lower but not setting until after 7 o’clock.
Sunday:
Daylight Saving Time begins today, as we move the clocks ahead one hour, making the sunrise and sunset an hour later. There is actually a connection to astronomy, as time used to be “local”, based on the Sun at noon. That changed in the 1800s, when trains needed a “standard” time system.