Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Tuesday May 10th through Sunday May 15th.
The moon is at first quarter on Friday the 13th so we'll have a waxing crescent moon for the work week and a waxing gibbous moon for the weekend.
Jupiter is now high in the south as the sky darkens after sunset and is setting at 3:30 a.m. at midweek. Look for Jupiter to the left of the moon on Saturday night.
Mars is rising at 9:00 p.m. this week as is continues to grow in brightness and angular size as we move towards opposition and closest approach to Earth later this month. Saturn is rising at 9:40 p.m. this week and is moving towards opposition in early June. Both Mars and Saturn will be well-placed for viewing all summer.
The two inner planets, Mercury and Venus, are close to one another and close to the sun so they can't be seen with the unaided eye at the moment. Mercury is slowly moving away from the sun after its transit of the solar disk on Monday May 9th and will eventually be visible low in the east before sunrise. Venus is heading towards superior conjunction when it will move behind the sun from the Earth's point of view early in June.
Public viewing on UT campus telescopes has finished for the spring semester. Summer session viewing will start the second week in June. Please check back for exact details on starting dates and times.
Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.
