Starwatch: the young moon draws close to Saturn in Sagittarius

Starwatch 25 November 2019 moon, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn

The bright planets of Venus and Jupiter remain fairly close in the evening sky this week. They are situated in the constellation of Sagittarius, the archer. In the gathering twilight of the late afternoon of 28 November, they will be joined by a very young, two-day-old moon. All three are very low, close to the south-western horizon, so will need a clear viewing location. Even then, the tiny crescent of the moon will be a challenge to spot. A day later, however, things become noticeably easier. The young crescent moon will have 10% of its surface illuminated and will be higher in the sky. It will still appear as a beautifully thin crescent. The chart shows the view looking south-west at 17:00GMT on 29 November. On this night, the slender moon will be approaching the planet Saturn, which will appear as a yellowish point of light of medium brightness. Both objects will be located towards the rear of Sagittarius, and will set soon after the sun.