Moon and planets this weekend

[Morris Jones]

Weather looks good for sidewalk astronomy this weekend. We'll have a 
waxing gibbous moon, Saturn, and possibly a glimpse of Venus and Mars.

We plan to be in Old Town Pasadena this evening (Friday), and Old Town 
Monrovia Saturday evening, 7:30 'til 9:30 p.m.

In Pasadena, look for telescopes on Colorado Blvd., on the north side of 
the street, somewhere in the two-block stretch from Fair Oaks to 
Pasadena Ave.

In Monrovia, we'll be on the corner of Myrtle and Lime, at Library Park.

Saturn should be a treat, with the rings barely four degrees open right now.

Venus is the brightest star in the west, following the sun into the 
horizon.  It's in a gibbous phase right now, on the far side of the sun 
from earth.  It will be fun to watch later in the year as it swings 
towards earth and changes to crescent phase.

Mars continues moving further away from earth.  While it's high in the 
sky, we don't expect to see more than a pumpkin-colored dot at this point.

If you're up before dawn, as I usually am, look for bright Jupiter in 
the east, having risen just an hour or so before the sun.

Mojo
-- 
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mojo_la