Sky At a Glance

23 Aug Sky At a Glance

If you're an early riser, this is a great time to identify our home planet Earth's closest neighbor – mythical Mars – as it dances at dawn with the waning crescent Moon in the easy to identify constellation of Gemini the Twins. Notice the difference between the bright white stars Castor and Pollux versus the more yellowish-orange color of Mars. Small planet Mercury is also plotted in the graphic drawing here as well, but it's actually too faint in the bright morning twilight to see without optical aid.