Saturn, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Mercury Light Up The Night Sky

The October night sky will feature several planets visible in the overnight sky.  First catch Saturn, then Jupiter, Mars and Venus, and finally Mercury in the night sky as this month's planetary parade begins.

As October begins,  Saturn will be shining in the night sky and by month's end, it will be gone, thanks to its lowering altitude and it's setting progressively closer to sunset. Then four more planets join the night sky parade to put on a great show for those who manage to get up at the crack of dawn. During the first half of October, Jupiter, Mars and Venus will be readily evident in the eastern sky, 60 to 90 minutes before sunrise.

On October 8 and 9, It will be well worth your while to set your alarm clock for around 5:30 a.m., and venturing outside to view a fascinating and changing array between three planets, a bright star and a waning crescent moon in the eastern sky.

On the morning of Oct. 8, you'll see a slender crescent moon and 5 or 6 degrees to its lower left you'll see dazzling Venus. On the morning of Oct. 9, a thinner lunar crescent will form an isosceles triangle; the vertex angle is at Mars, while Jupiter and the moon form the base angles with Jupiter to the lower left of the moon.

Mercury will also be visible to the naked eye for the last three weeks in October.