Joe Rao

On March 20 at 5:24 p.m. EDT (2:24 p.m. PDT) the spring (or vernal) equinox occurs as the sun's rays shine directly down on the equator.

The sky is in transition throughout March as we watch the glorious wintertime stars and bright constellations give way to the somewhat dimmer stars of spring.

A comet recently discovered zooming through our solar system has the potential to be quite bright when it arrives late in 2024, but comets have let us down before.

Undoubtedly, one of the most beautiful objects in the night sky is the Great Orion Nebula, also known as M42, which shines in the southwestern sky in March.

You can catch an incredibly close view of these worlds for 2 hours after sunset tonight (March 1).

The moon and Mars will make a close approach high in the sky tonight (Feb. 27), making for a great skywatching spectacle.

Venus and Jupiter should make for a very striking visual spectacle, no doubt attracting the attention of even those who don't give more than a casual glance at the night sky.

Throughout history, the has moon remained a favorite skywatching target for astronomers of all levels.

On Monday (Jan. 30), the moon will cross in front of Mars, causing an occultation or eclipse of the planet.

The planet Venus is the undisputed star of the night skies throughout 2023

Venus and Saturn will be in conjunction on Sunday (Jan. 22), appearing close enough together in the sky to both be seen through a telescope. The close pairing will also be visible to the naked-eye.

On Feb. 1, comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) will pass to within 28 million miles (42 million km) of our planet, its first visit in 50,000 years.

The bright moon will interfere with the 2023 Quadrantid meteor shower this year, limiting the shooting star display.

The moon will be at new moon phase on Dec. 23 when the Ursid meteor shower reaches its peak, meaning it won't provide any hindrance at all for meteor watching.

The Geminid meteor shower is predicted to reach its peak before dawn next Wednesday morning (Dec. 14).

The full moon will appear in very close proximity to a brilliant Mars in the evening of Wednesday (Dec. 7) as the Red Planet reaches opposition.

Here's what you can expect to see in the Thanksgiving night sky of 2022.

Scientists have produced various models of the Leonid meteor shower and all of them are indicating that the Earth will intersect a few "rivers of rubble" left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle this year.

One of the most spectacular celestial sights ever seen appeared 450 years ago this month. Here's the incredible story of Tycho's star, one of only five supernovas ever observed.

The Ursid meteor shower of 2021 will peak overnight on Dec. 21 but don't expect a great meteor display.

There is one more meteor shower to consider before we close the book on 2020: the December Ursid meteor shower, which usually occurs during the overnight hours of Dec. 21-22.

The Geminid meteor shower, which will likely be the very best meteor display of the year, is just around the corner, predicted to peak late on Sunday night (Dec. 13).

The December Geminid meteor shower is usually considered the most satisfying of the annual meteor displays, but this year, the moon will put a damper on the spectacle.