I KNOW this cold weather isn't to everyone's liking but it's great for stargazing, writes STUART ATKINSON. On clear, frosty nights like this the stars flash and sparkle like colourful jewels. If you can, just for one night, head out to somewhere without much light pollution - as far as possible from the lights blazing on the sides of houses, office blocks and hotels, and from the blinding glare of sports ground floodlights - and enjoy one of the most beautiful sights in nature: a starry winter sky.

Now is also a good time to look for Venus in the evening sky. It's been out of view for quite a while, but now it is finally creeping back up into the twilight sky after sunset. It's not very high yet, and not obvious to the naked eye, but if you look to the west at around half past six in the evening you should be able to spot it very low in the sky, just above the treetops. If you have a pair of binoculars, scan the western sky with those very, very slowly and Venus should pop into view - but only after the Sun has set.

If you have good eyesight (or are using binoculars) you might see another, fainter star shining very close to Venus, just to its right. This is another planet, Mercury. This coming weekend they will appear side by side, then Mercury will drift up past Venus.