Today:
At around 8:00 PM, the evening twilight will fade, showing Saturn to have risen in the east-southeast. Saturn will ride across the southern sky throughout the night, among the faint stars of Pisces and Aquarius, but a little closer to Pisces. Saturn’s orbit of 29 and a half years means it changes very little over several months relative to the stars, remaining in the faint stars of Aquarius from January 2023 through the end of this winter.
Thursday:
Tomorrow morning, starting near 4:45, but best viewed from 5:15 to 5:45 AM, Leo the Lion will be rising in the east-northeast. Venus and the Crescent Moon will be closely clustered around the lion’s breastbone and brightest star, Regulus. The Moon will only reveal 5 percent of its surface, while Venus appears just to the Moon’s lower right, and Regulus shines 100 times fainter than Venus, to its lower right.
Friday:
An unusual, and not-well-known phenomenon can be viewed by those up before the “crack of dawn, about 2 hours before sunrise, or about 4:30 AM. Looking east on a clear, moonless morning, a wedge of light, leaning its triangular shape to the upper right is not early dawn, but “Zodiacal Light”, sunlight reflecting off the numerous particles that orbit the sun at the same level or plane as all of the planets. It’s more conveniently seen in the evenings near the Spring Equinox.