(Continued from page 12)

the May 2012 full moon.
• But remember Aries, too. In another week or so, the moon will drop out of the evening sky, giving you the chance to see the Ram in all its glory. According to the lore of the heavens, this supernatural Ram could speak and reason. You'll find the Ram on the chart at the top of this post, and on the chart below. The tiny, but significant Ram constellation is small, but it's really pretty easy to find on a dark, moonless night, because two of its stars (Hamal and Sheratan) are of medium-brightness and are close together. You might need binoculars to see these stars in the moon's glare. By the way, the star Sheratan - the middle of the three stars in Aries - marked the location of the vernal equinox about 2,000 years ago.
• Try finding Aries in relationship to a more famous star pattern, the tiny dipper-

shaped cluster Pleiades. As always, a moon-free night and a dark sky will enhance the view.
• Bottom line: On the night of November 26, 2012 the bright light to the east of the moon is Jupiter. Saturn and Venus are closest together in the east before dawn on the morning of November 26. Mercury is now creeping out of the dawn. There will be a subtle kind of lunar eclipse - called a penumbral lunar eclipse - on the night of November 27-28, 2012.
•