Bright spot in the East (morning) and in the West (night)

[dx]

I had observed a bright spot in the east in the morning, can be seen even before 7am, today it is below the moon (crescent). When look thruough telescope, it is like a crescent or 1/3 of a ring. What is this?

Also at night about 10pm I can see a bright spot (white, and a bit blue??) at the west. Look through telescope it is still a dot; is it Venus? I remember about half year ago I saw Jupiter at the west and Venus was on top of it. Where is the Jupiter now?

Another question, if say Jupiter in the west at night and another planet in the east, will these location stay throught the whole year?

[Sam Lee]

Haha , you are looking at Venus !
You will see Venus going through phases like our Moon.
Venus is what we called the Morning star or the Evening star, because at different periods of the year, they will appear at different timing. A few months back Venus can be seen clearly when it was evening time and Sun was setting.
Just remember when you see a very bright star in the West during evening or East during Morning, its should be Venus.

The bright spot you saw (white) 10pm to the West should be Sirius. Brightest star we see from Earth (other than our Sun) .

Jupiter will rise in the early morning ard 4am. If you can get up early enough, maybe when u go to work, Venus is below Moon now. Jupiter is a few steps above the Moon.

Stare at them long enough, you will notice Planets do not blink like a normal star. Thats how we differentiate them from normal stars.

[Airconvent]

hey sam...you did not mention Saturn which is ideal for night viewing now...

[dx]

hi sam thanks for the explanation. Early this morning still can see the Venus and Moon, guess tomorrow have to wake up extra early to catch Jupiter.

How can I view Saturn? what time and what direction (west, south.....angle from horizon?), I really do not know how to track the planet.

[Sam Lee]

Hi dx,

Airconvent is right, its a good time of the year to catch Saturn as it will appear right after dark.
Unless you know where Leo is , its just beside.
Try using the software called Stellarium (downloaded free, google online). It will tell you what is what based on your location. Once you located your bearings and and area where Saturn is to be, observe the stars in that area. Saturn will appear very slightly orange and does not blink like the other stars do.

Sam

[dx]

alright Sam, thanks. Will try to look for it.

[superiorstream]

Hi,dx
Saturn is almost overhead at around 10-11pm at night;its the yellowish "star"thats dont twinkle,and slightly brighter than the rest around it.This is the brightest it can get this year.Happy observing.

[Airconvent]

in our light-polluted skies, leo is easier to identify as 4 stars in a trapezium-shaped overhead around 10pm. The odd one out with an orange tinge is Saturn. I completely forgot about it when I gazed up at the sky but a quick check using my Universe 2000 software on my pocketpc confirmed it is Saturn.
Happy Hunting

[dx]

I got a planisphere and found Leo on it. Last night look at sky, i think i saw "Big Dipper" just in front of me when i was facing the north, it is the one with trapezium shape and 3 more star as the "tail" right? If refer to planisphere, big dipper at 50 degress and Leo at 15 degree, so Leo is closer to horizon? So if according to Sam, saturn is at north side?

Anyway, if big dipper is the one i saw, i followed the "tail" and saw a brighter spot in yellowish? this is the brightest i can found last night. could it be the BOOTES or saturn?

btw, are we able to see the ring of saturn by telescope?

be honest, i have a planisphere but dont know how to use, that is why i said i think i saw big dipper.

[guangwei]

Yes. We can see saturn's ring by telescope. Even with a small, inexpensive beginner scope.