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solstice sun. Although the Royal Stars as seasonal signposts change over the long coarse of time, they still mark the four quadrants of the heavens.
• Regulus coincided with the summer solstice point some 4,300 years ago. In our time, the sun has its annual conjunction with Regulus on or near August 22, or about two months after the summer solstice - or alternatively, one month before the autumn equinox. Regulus will mark the autumn equinox point some 2,100 years into the future.
• Three planets you can see in May 2013 sky. If you want to catch the sky's brightest and second-brightest planets - Venus and Jupiter, respectively - you have to spot them over the sunset point on the horizon about 45 to 60 minutes after sunset. At mid-northern latitudes, Venus follows the sun beneath the horizon a little over one hour after sunset and Jupiter sinks below the horizon nearly two hours after the sun. Venus and Jupiter are now headed for a cool planetary trio with Mercury before this month ends. A planetary trio is when three planets fit within a circle of no more than 5 degrees diameter on the sky's dome. On May 25, 26 and 27, Mercury, Venus and Jupiter will fit within a 3-degree-diameter circle on the sky. The circle of three planets will be most compact on May 26.
• Three planets close in western evening sky last week of May
• Mercury isn't visible yet, but Venus and Jupiter are. You just as to look for them low in the sky. On May 17, as soon as you see the moon high overhead after sunset, start looking for Jupiter and Venus low in the west. Although Venus is the brighter planet, Jupiter might be the easier to spot, because it's higher up in the sky and not as close to the twilight glare. An imaginary line from the moon and past Jupiter helps you to locate Venus by the horizon. Binoculars might be helpful for spotting Venus in the bright twilight, near the place where the sun set. But you should also be able to see Venus with the eye now.
• The third-brightest planet in the evening sky, Saturn, is found in the southeast at nightfall, not far from the star Spica. Both Saturn and Spica are out for most of the night, and they reach their high point for the night at or near midnight. You can tell which light is Saturn and which is Spica by color. Whereas Spica radiates blue-white, Saturn exhibits a golden hue. If you have difficulty discerning color with the unaided eye, get an eyeful of these colorful celestial gems in binoculars!
• Bottom line: Two planets - Venus and Jupiter - await you in the western twilight, and another planet - Saturn - shines in the southeast at nightfall. On May 17, 2013, the first quarter moon and Regulus beam in the southwest as evening falls.
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