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Monday, Dec. 5<\/strong> \u2013 Waxing gibbous moon appears to the right (west) of the Pleiades star cluster. The two are above the southeastern horizon around 8:30 p.m.<\/p>\n Tuesday, Dec. 6<\/strong> \u2013 Waxing gibbous moon appears between the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters. This celestial trio is in the southeast around 9 p.m.<\/p>\n Wednesday, Dec. 7<\/strong> \u2013 Rare Event!<\/strong> \u2013\u00a0<\/span><\/span>Th<\/span>e moon will eclipse Mars at 10:50 p.m. Start watching at least five minutes prior to occurrence. Mars will reappear from behind the moon at about 11:12 p.m. This event is called a lunar occultation and happens for Mars, on average, every 14 years for a given location.<\/p>\n Thursday, Dec. 8<\/strong> \u2013 Mars is opposite to the sun at 12:36 a.m. Therefore, Mars will rise at sunset and set at sunrise. This event is called a planetary opposition.<\/p>\n Friday, Dec. 9<\/strong> \u2013 The waning gibbous moon, now two days past full, appears among the stars of Gemini. These stars, as well as the stars of Orion and the bright star, Sirius, are in the east-southeast around 9 p.m.<\/p>\n Saturday, Dec. 10<\/strong> \u2013 The waning gibbous moon and the bright stars of Gemini, Castor and Pollux, will form a right triangle as this celestial trio rises in the northeast. Look after 7 p.m.<\/p>\n Sunday, Dec. 11<\/strong> \u2013 The Big Dipper is very low in the north around 6:30 p.m.\u00a0\u00a0Five hours later, the Big Dipper is \u201cstanding\u201d on its handle above the north-northeastern horizon<\/p>\n
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