All this week, the planets Mars and Saturn will make a nice pairing in the pre-dawn sky. As seen from London, they will be low in the south; Mars is the brighter, slightly lower of the pair whereas Saturn is the yellow, dimmer one. Mars is 17 times smaller than Saturn but six times closer, which is why it appears brighter than its larger planetary cousin. Mars is currently approaching Earth and, by July, will be at its brightest for 15 years.
Both planets appear in the constellation Sagittarius, the central stars of which form the shape of a teapot. To see this teapot, however, you will need a clear horizon, well away from streetlights.
As the week goes on, the planets move progressively farther apart but, on Sunday, they are joined in the hours before sunrise by the moon. The chart shows the view on 8 March at 5.00am. The moon will be in its waning phase, only one week away from the end of the current lunar month.
