Today:
High in the southwest in the failing twilight, the First Quarter Moon appears halfway between Mars and Regulus, the brightest star in Leo. Regulus sits very close to the path of the Sun, the same general path that the Moon follows, so these two have a regularly scheduled meeting every 27 days and 8 hours, the next meeting coming tomorrow evening.
Monday:
The Moon, now a waxing gibbous, has reached Leo, and is abreast of Regulus, the star that mark’s Leos breast plate, and which is also the constellation’s brightest. The Moon’s next close encounter with a bright star will be when it cozies up next to Spica, in Virgo, on the evening of the 9th.
Tuesday:
The Eta Aquariid meteor shower continues tonight, with modest interference from the Moon. Best seen after midnight, with up to 15 meteors or “shooting stars” per hour, you’ll find much darker skies after the Moon sets near 3:30 AM. These cosmic pebbles that burn up upon entering the Earth’s atmosphere are actually the debris from Halley’s Comet, not returning until 2061.