February will be a special month in the sky. The brightest stars and constellations of the year will be well placed for viewing in the early evening with a quick look outside. Orion (the Hunter) with its iconic belt of three stars will be in the southern sky and in the midst of the bright winter stars. The belt will be flanked by reddish Betelgeuse above and Rigel below, both in Orion. The belt will point up to Aldebaran in Taurus (the Bull), with brighter Jupiter to its left, and down to Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, in Canis Major (the Great Dog). Procyon in Canis Minor (the Little Dog) will be to the left and above Sirius, and Capella in Auriga (the Charioteer) will be above and to the left of Aldebaran. Completing this grouping of bright stars and planets will be the unmistakable Castor and Pollux, the twin stars of Gemini (the Twins) that will be a little above a line between Capella and Procyon, with bright Mars to the right of Pollux and to the lower right of Castor.

Adding to this lustrous grouping of bright stars and planets will be brilliant Venus that will rule the western evening sky. Dimmer Saturn also will be present, but after having passed Venus in January, it will be moving lower in the sky until it is lost in the twilight glow. The last day to see it will be around February 20 when it will be very low in the early evening sky. If you can find Saturn, look below it for Mercury, which will be climbing into the evening sky to join the alignment of planets. Alignment happens because the solar system is flat. Planets do not wander all over the sky, but they move along a narrow path.

During February, Mars will be moving in retrograde motion, or westward when compared to the background stars. This motion will take it farther to the upper right of Pollux, one of the bright twin stars of Gemini. However, that motion will slow until Mars stops on February 23. It then will begin its regular, or eastward motion, slowly at first and then picking up speed.

The motion of Mars and the other outer planets can be difficult to understand. During the night, we see them moving westward along with the background stars, an apparent motion that is caused by the rotation of the Earth. We also see them drifting westward during the course of several months, an apparent motion that is caused by the Earth’s faster orbital speed as we catch up to them and leave them behind. However, their true motion is eastward, and that can be seen as they pass background stars. Adding to this motion complexity is their seeming retrograde or westward motion that occurs when Earth passes an outer planet. During retrograde motion, a planet will still rise in the east, move westward during the night, and drift slowly westward over the course of several weeks. It is only its westward motion past the background stars that is different. This is easiest to see with Mars because of its faster orbital speed.

Finally, these stars and planets will be followed by Regulus, the brightest star in Leo (the Lion) that will rise at about 7:00 early in the month, and later in the evening by Spica, the brightest star of Virgo (the Maiden), and to its left brighter Arcturus, the brightest star in Bootes (the Herdsman). The appearance of these stars is a sure sign that spring is not far away.

Observing Highlights

-Feb. 1: The crescent Moon will be close to the left of brilliant Venus and farther above much dimmer Saturn.

-Feb. 6: The Moon will be above very bright Jupiter with dimmer Aldebaran, the eye of Taurus (the Bull), below Jupiter.

-Feb. 7: The Moon will be close to the lower left of Elnath, the second brightest star of Taurus. It represents the tip of one of the bull’s horns. However, Elnath is also part of the five-sided constellation Auriga (the Charioteer).

-Feb. 9: The Moon will be to the lower left of Mars and closer to the right of Pollux, the slightly brighter star of Gemini (the Twins). Castor, Gemini’s other twin star, will be to the left or upper left of Mars.

-Feb. 12: After they rise at about 6:30, the full Moon will be to the left of Regulus, the brightest star of Leo (the Lion). The Moon will probably be too bright to see Regulus, but on the 16th, Regulus should be visible before the Moon follows it into the sky.

-Feb. 16: The Moon will lead Spica, the brightest star in the constellation Virgo (the Maiden) into the sky at about 11:00.

-Feb. 21: Before dawn, the Moon will be close below Antares, the brightest star in Scorpius (the Scorpion).