Winter Sky Scavenger Hunt

Just a few days beyond the new moon, the sky is still dark enough to see plenty of stars – that is, if the weather cooperates. And there’s lots to see, as over the next few weeks night sky watchers will have an opportunity to see five planets over the course of an evening: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn (in order from the sun).

So head outside tonight for an astronomy scavenger hunt. You don’t even need a telescope, though a pair of binoculars might come in handy. See how many of these things you can find:

• a piece of the moon
• a planet (or 2 or 5)
• three bright stars in a line (Orion’s belt)
• a star that never moves
• a falling star (meteor)
• the lights of a city
• an airplane
• the brightest star in the sky
• the Milky Way galaxy
• seven sisters
• the V-shaped head and horns of a bull (Taurus)
• a satellite
• a star that is just rising
• a star that is setting
• a constellation that you make up

For up-to-date night sky info check out earth and sky.