• The rather wide waxing crescent moon and the dazzling planet Jupiter shine in front of the constellation Taurus this Monday evening, March 18. The moon and Jupiter (plus all the solar system planets) regularly pass in front of Taurus because it's one of the 13 constellations of the Zodiac. The Zodiac makes up that narrow band of background stars in front of which the sun,

moon and planets forever travel.
• The ecliptic marks the sun's yearly path through the constellations of the Zodiac. If you could see the stars during the daytime, you'd see the sun shining in front of Taurus from about May 13 to June 21 every year. During this period of time, the sun rises with Taurus at sunrise, crosses the sky with Taurus during the day, and sets with Taurus at sunset.
• In contrast to the sun, which stays in Taurus for over a month every year, the moon only stays in this constellation for a few to several days each month. Jupiter, in contrast to both the sun and moon, remains in front of Taurus for a solid year. It takes Jupiter nearly 12 years to go full circle in front of the background stars of the Zodiac.
• Later this month, the moon will swing into the constellation Gemini. After that, the moon will go through the constellations Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra and Scorpius.
• In the meantime, Jupiter will remain in front of Taurus all month long. In fact, you can use this super-brilliant planet to locate this constellation for months to come, or until Taurus departs from the evening sky. Jupiter will finally exit the evening sky and enter the morning sky on June 19, 2013.
• This evening look for the waxing crescent moon and the brilliant planet Jupiter in front of the constellation Taurus the Bull.
•