A monthly look at astronomical events in the sky and on Earth

Compiled and written by Steve Sawyer

Welcome to Februarys edition of What’s Up

Hi and welcome to Februarys column. I hope you found some clear skies amidst the January murk. January saw some spectacular auroras around the world, including parts of the UK. I missed them due to the weather! I hope you managed to catch a glimpse.
This month the winter constellations of Orion and Gemini still dominate our southern skies. For planetary observers, this is a headline month: a rare “planet parade” emerges in the final week, featuring six of our solar system neighbours—Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune—stretching across the western horizon shortly after sunset.
More on these later on but first…. Continue reading →