VENUS might have deserted us for now, but there are still planets to see in the evening sky, writes STUART ATKINSON. Mercury is now quite high in the west after sunset, and although it isn't anywhere near as bright as 'The Evening Star' was through the winter months, it is actually quite obvious to the naked eye once you've spotted it. Sweeping the western sky with a pair of binoculars half an hour after sunset will help you find it, then you will be able to see it more easily as the sky darkens.

Mars is still visible after sunset, and on the evening of March 30 will lie just to the right of a lovely, fingernail clipping-thin Moon. The following evening the Moon will have moved on a little way, and will be higher above the Red Planet and to its left. Look closely and you will see the Moon, Mars and Mercury all forming a diagonal line in the western sky as twilight deepens.

By the time the sky is dark Jupiter will be blazing in the east, strikingly bright, especially if you can observe it from somewhere with a really dark sky unspoiled by light pollution. A pair of binoculars will show you a few tiny stars close to Jupiter - not actually stars, but some of its family of 63 moons. But if you don't have binoculars don't worry; just enjoy seeing a planet big enough to contain a thousand Earths shining like a lantern in the Cumbrian sky.

Stuart Atkinson

Eddington Astronomical Society of Kendal