January 20-21, 2025: The morning moon passes Spica in the south-southwestern sky before daybreak. Each night four bright planets are visible simultaneously.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Events are described here relative to sunrise and sunset. Find sunset times for the month in local media.
Moon Passes Spica
Before sunrise, the bright waning moon is visible in the south-southwest. It is near the star Spica, Virgo’s brightest.
Spica’s name means “the ear of corn.” Its color is distinctly blue-white, shining with a brightness of 1,900 suns at a distance of 250 light years. It is the 10th brightest star visible from the mid-northern latitudes.
Events before Sunrise
Here’s what to look for one hour before sunup:
- January 20: The gibbous moon, 62% illuminated, is less than halfway up in the south-southwest. The lunar orb is 8.0° to Spica’s right.
- January 21: Approaching the morning half phase, that occurs at 2:31 p.m. Central Time, the 53% lit moon, is over 30° above the horizon and 4.1° to Spica’s lower left. Earlier today, the moon occulted or eclipsed the star for sky watchers in southern and western Africa. This is the ninth in a series of 20 occultations that run through November 17th.
Four Evening Planets
In the evening sky, four bright planets are visible strung along the ecliptic, the plane of the solar system. Brilliant Venus, approaching its greatest brightness during mid-February, dominates the sky from the southwest after nightfall. After its conjunction with Saturn on the 18th, the Evening Star is to the dimmer Ringed Wonder’s upper right.
Farther eastward, bright Jupiter is over halfway up in the east-southeast and Mars is about 20° above the east-northeast horizon near the Gemini Twins.
During morning twilight, look for the moon as it passes Spica.
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