Nearly all the visible planets are in our evening sky soon after sunset. As the red twilight sky darkens and turns to blue and purple you can see Jupiter high in the sky. It is the brightest visible planet overhead. Look south and you can see the red planet Mars in close proximity to the fainter planet Saturn. Both are in the southernmost zodiacal constellation Scorpius.

While it is showtime for many of the planets, the sun’s two nearest planets haven’t been participating.

Mercury, which transited the sun last month, is finally making an appearance, and is now visible low in the southeastern sky before the sun comes up. Mercury is at greatest elongation, which means it is higher in the sky than usual and within visual reach.

You have a chance to see it it low in the sky. It rarely gets this convenient. Mercury is always close to the sun, whether it is in the morning or evening sky.

Venus hasn’t been visible for months, but that will change. Venus reaches superior conjunction on Monday. It is behind the sun, as far from the Earth as it can get. Change is ahead. In the weeks ahead Venus will appear in our evening sky, and be our summer evening planet.

Crescent Moon and Regulus

On Thursday night a thin crescent moon appears low in the southwestern sky, close and above the bright star Regulus. Regulus is the principal star in the zodiacal constellation Leo. The two are only two degrees apart.