Photo with annotations of the January 2025 Full Moon, Mars, and nearby stars. Credit: William L. Baliko
From planets to constellations, there is currently an amazing night-sky spectacle going on above us. Throughout the coming weeks, the skies are featuring four easily visible planets and a plethora of stars and constellations.
While there are clear skies and warmer-than-usual weather, get out and take a look at the shimmering night sky! Several remarkable views are currently on display, such as the waning Wolf Moon (the first full moon of the year) and the red planet, Mars, which is as only this visible every two years.
Jennifer Howse, Education Specialist with the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory, shares what’s on display above us and how to view it:
“be outside by about 7 p.m., then you’ll be able to see in the southwest, you’re going to see a couple of really bright objects, you’ll see Saturn and Venus are travelling quite close together and then if you look a little bit more to the east, then you’re going to find Jupiter and Mars rising in the east as well. Now the ones that you wouldn’t be able to see with your eyes are Neptune and Mercury are pretty close to Saturn in the sky and you’ll also [see] Uranus is very close to Jupiter, but those you can’t see, those you’d have to have some pretty powerful telescopes to be able to observe.”
All you need to enjoy this current starry display is to find somewhere dark, such as local parks or other low-light areas, and then sit back and enjoy the skyward views.
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