April 2 — April 8, 2012
This week, the bright planet Venus will pass through Pleiades in the evening sky. Look into the western sky at dusk to observe Venus and Pleiades, as both can be seen with the naked eye. This conjunction happens once every eight years. Pleiades is a well-known magnificent star cluster.
Venus has been very bright and noticeable as of late, if you’ve been scanning the heavens. Around 9:00 PM EST is a good time to go stargazing.
On Friday, the full moon will form a line with Spica and the planet Saturn. Both will be located to the left of the moon. This is looking at the eastern sky at dusk. The planet Mars can be spotted in the eastern sky as well, and it can be identified by its faint reddish glow.
The Big Dipper, which is part of the constellation Ursa Major, is in the northeastern sky at this time. The end stars point to Polaris, the Northern Star.
