Tonight's moon is one day short of first quarter but it is also small. You probably won't notice anything particularly different about this nearest celestial neighbor. Astronomers have determined the moon will be in apogee, its farthest from the earth in its 28 day orbit around us.

The moon is roughly 251,376 miles away. At other times the moon can be 25,000 miles closer. Can you see the difference? 

The moon will be in the zodiacal constellation Libra. It will be especially nice for those on the water, or standing at South Beach. The moon is low in the south, moving through an area of many stars.

Look again on Saturday night for the moon as it moves through the zodiacal constellation Scorpius. 

Where are the Planets

The fairly bright red planet Mars is now in the western sky, hovering above about where the sun set earlier in the evening. There is another bright star, Spica, the main star in the constellation Virgo.

Saturn rises in the eastern sky later this evening. 

Morning planets Jupiter and Venus still dominate the eastern sky before sunrise. Venus is the brighter of the two.