PLANETS TO VIEW: Saturn and Mars are barely visible in the west after sunset but can be spotted with the moon's help this week. On Tuesday evening, the thin crescent is left of Saturn, and on Wednesday evening it is just left of Mars. Jupiter rises just before midnight, and Venus
is well up by the onset of dawn twilight. Mercury is out of sight.
THE MOON is a thin evening crescent early in the week and waxes to first quarter by Saturday. The best evening stargazing this week is any night up to Thursday.
THIS WEEK: Cassiopeia, the other prominent near-polar star group besides the Big Dipper, makes its return to the sky. It will be a feature of the northern sky well into early spring.
Look for Cassiopeia in the northeast by 8:30 p.m. The constellation contains three second-magnitude stars and sits in front of the Milky Way, which rural observers should be able to see once darkness sets in this week.
For fun, scan binoculars across Cassiopeia and see how many among the thousands of background Milky Way stars you can see.
Just up and left of Cassiopeia is her husband, Cepheus the king. However, he's upside down and hardly the same brilliance as his wife.
DID YOU KNOW? Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Perseus, Andromeda and Pegasus are not only constellations. They are players in the myth-based film "Clash of the Titans."
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