October skywatching tips: How to view the brightest planets
What's the story
October will bring a spectacular display of planets in the night sky, perfect for stargazing.
Venus, Mercury, Saturn, and Jupiter will all make appearances this month. Venus will take center stage in the southeast morning sky, shining brightly for nearly four hours before sunrise.
Mercury will join Venus during the first week of October but gradually fade away as the month progresses.
Unfortunately, Mars will stay hidden from our view throughout the month.
Details
Spotting Mercury in the morning twilight
In the first few days of October, Mercury will make a brief appearance in the morning twilight.
Mercury made a prominent appearance in mid-to-late September, but now it will take a lower position in the dawn each day and will vanish from view after the first week of October.
You can use stargazing apps like Stellarium to track the positions of these celestial objects in the overhead sky from your location.
Venus
Venus will be shining brightly in October's dawn sky
Venus will head to its highest point in the dawn sky during October, roughly 30 degrees up in the southeast an hour before sunrise for observers at mid-northern latitudes.
On October 10, Venus will shine brightly 2 degrees toward the lower right of the Regulus star, the brightest star in the constellation Leo.
A waning crescent moon will also join Venus on the same day, hanging a few degrees to its upper left.
Facts
Saturn is the brightest object in the Aquarius constellation
Saturn will shine high in the southeast in the night sky and edge up to its peak altitude in the south around mid-evening.
It's the brightest object in the Aquarius constellation. When viewed using a telescope, Saturn's rings will appear more tilted.
On the evening of October 23, Saturn will be seen to the upper left of the Moon. On October 24, the Moon will appear east of the Saturn, per NASA.
Insights
Moon and Jupiter will pair up on October 28
Jupiter will make its appearance about 1.5 hours after sunset and continue to rise earlier each evening as the month progresses.
On October 28, the full Moon and Jupiter will create a stunning pair in the night sky, with Jupiter appearing toward the lower left of the Moon.
However, Mars will remain too close to the Sun for observation until year's end.