Today:
Venus is now in its slow transition into the Sun’s earlier morning arrival, gaining 10 minutes since the first of the year. Venus lingers low in the southeast through mid-February, when it briefly encounters Mars, and then spends spring and most of the summer lost behind the Sun. It waits until fall for a challenging evening view, lifting higher in December.
Wednesday:
The Moon is one day from being completely Full, as it climbs into the east-northeast during the fading twilight. By 7:15 PM, the Moon has climbed more than one third of the way up in the east, directly below the two stars called the Twins of Gemini, with Castor the higher of the pair, and Pollux closer to the Moon.
Thursday:
Tonight’s skies feature the Full “Wolf” Moon, so named by Native Americans for the wolves that would gather outside villages in the deep of winter. It sits well below the Twins of Gemini, and well to the left of the bright star Procyon. It has also been called the Old Moon, and the Hunger Moon.