Planet Viewing

They’re Up There: You Can’t Miss Them

The planets Mars and Saturn are gleaming up there in the sky these May nights.  Saturn is in the constellation Virgo, not far from the bright star Spica. I’ve seen a lot of images people are posting of Saturn, and the rings are standing out. So, if you have a decent pair of binoculars, or even better, a small telescope, you can spot those rings yourself.

When I was a kid, one of the first images of a planet I saw was of Saturn. Those rings absolutely mystified me. They were the most alien thing I could think of “out there” and I often wondered how such things could form. Astronomers knew the rings were made up of particles, but it wasn’t until the Voyager mission to Saturn that they knew just how complex the system really is. And, of course, the Cassini Mission is taking their understanding to new heights.  You can find some gorgeous views of Saturn from Cassini at the mission Web site, and I think they’ll whet your appetite to see the planet for yourself.

Mars is close to the bright star Regulus, in the constellation of Leo the Lion. It’s a reddish-looking blob of light and if you have a fairly powerful backyard telescope, you can make out some of the surface markings (dark and light) on the planet.  Of course, the best way to look at Mars (after you’ve spotted it in your night sky) is to surf over to NASA’s Mars site, or ESA’s Mars Express page.  There, you’ll find many fascinating images of the Red Planet taken by spacecraft visiting the planet “up close and personal”.

Go out these May nights and check out the planets. They’re not hard to find and they’ll pique your curiosity. I guarantee it!

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