Jupiter will be the most prominent planet early this fall, visible in the evening sky to the west-southwest. During late September, watch its relationship to waxing Moon and stars such as Antares. With telescope, its four largest moons should be easy to see. By Late October, Jupiter sets in the west at about Sunset; after then you won’t be able to see it for awhile. Saturn appears in the eastern sky before dawn in late September; and drifts southeast to south as the quarter progresses. Venus is visible as a “morning star” in September and early October, before it’s late October superior conjunction. Also view fleeting glimpses of Mercury.
Late September:
Sept 22--new Moon
Sept 23—Autumnal equinox; day and night have same duration; sun’s inclination at 1PM is equivalent to your geographic latitude
Sept 25-29—waxing crescent moon passes near Jupiter, Antares (the red star in Scorpius), and Sagittarias
Sept 30—first quarter Moon
October:
Oct 6—full Moon
Oct 10—first quarter Moon
Oct 13—last quarter Moon
Oct 21—Orionid meteor shower near peak in moonless sky
Oct 22—new Moon
Oct 23—Mars in conjunction
Oct 24-27—waxing crescent moon; may see mercury and Jupiter low in the western sky at dusk
Oct 27—Venus at superior conjunction
Oct 29—first quarter Moon; Pacific Standard Time begins—set clocks back 1 hour at 2AM Sunday
Oct 31—last opportunity to see Mercury and Jupiter for awhile in western twilight sky
November:
Nov 8—Mercury at inferior conjunction—rare transit across Sun’s disc
Nov 28—first quarter Moon
Nov 24—Mercury at inferior conjunction
December:
Four planets are visible in the eastern pre-dawn sky during early December: Saturn (up high), Mercury, Mars, Jupiter. Venus becomes prominent as an “evening star” in the western sky
Dec 1—Venus sets 30 minutes after sunset in the WSW
Dec 10—most compact trio of naked eye planets between 1980 and 2050 visible in pre-dawn eastern sky (Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter)
Dec 21—winter solstice (the shortest day of the year in northern hemisphere)
-Both dippers (in Ursa Major and Ursa Minor), Arcturus should be prominent in the evening skies. The “Big Dipper” handle is oriented close to horizontal; follow its arc to Arcturus. Ursa Major sets for awhile middle-late evening but should rise again during early AM. Watch it rotate around Polaris
-Antares (the bright red giant in Scorpius) sets in the west after dusk late September-early October
-Watch for Cassiopeia high in the northeast -- look for vertically oriented “W” shape
-Orion rises in the east late evening in October, and becomes prominent in the early evening by December