TWO pairs of planets are visible in the sky this coming week, but both require some hard work on your part if you want to see them.
Just after sunset, Venus and Saturn are visible very low in the south west, so low that any trees or hills on your horizon will hide them. But find somewhere with a low, flat skyline in that direction and you'll just be able to glimpse Saturn as a teeny tiny golden pinprick star, to the right and up a bit from brighter Venus. Sweeping the south west sky slowly with binoculars will help you find them, but only try that after the Sun has set.
If you find yourself up at around 4am Jupiter and Mars are visible too. Mars looks like an orange-red star low in the east, and Jupiter looks like a much brighter, blue-white star high over to its right. On Saturday morning the Moon will shine close to Jupiter, making a beautiful pairing as the sky brightens with the approach of dawn...
Stuart Atkinson
Eddington Astronomical Society of Kendal
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