Star Trak
Pumpkin-colored Mars will return to prominence during November, rising shortly before midnight at the beginning of the month and more than two hours earlier by month's end. The orange planet will brighten noticeably as it passes the stars of the Beehive cluster.
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Three planets will appear close together in the predawn sky in early October. Venus will be the first to rise, coming up two hours before the sun as a dazzling white "morning star" low in the east. Mercury will follow Venus about 45 minutes later. Last to appear will be Saturn, rising about 20 minutes after Mercury as the dawn sky brightens. Saturn will pass close to Mercury first and then Venus as the month advances.
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Jupiter will dominate the night sky during September. Glowing low in the southeast as evening twilight fades, it will climb high in the south before midnight and set around the time morning twilight begins. Jupiter's four brightest moons can usually be seen with binoculars, but on the night of Sept. 2-3, all four will be hidden either in front of the planet, behind it or in its shadow. Jupiter will not appear "moonless" again until 2019.
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Summer's silent fireworks will light up the sky when the annual Perseid meteor shower peaks before dawn on Aug. 12 and 13. This year, the Perseids will compete with the moon, but there will still be many bright streaks in the sky.
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The eastern sky will be crowded before dawn in July. Venus, Mars, the crescent moon and the Hyades and Pleiades star clusters will compete for attention in a series of striking formations. The constellation Taurus the Bull, where all of this will happen, will be hard to recognize.
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Seven planets will be visible in the night sky during June, led by Jupiter high in the south and Venus low in the southeast. Jupiter will be accompanied by Neptune all month, while Venus and Mars will be close companions.
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