The tiny planet Mercury rises due east about 6 a.m. as October begins. Look for it very low along the horizon, quite far below the bright star Regulus. It soon drops lower each day but has a close conjunction with Jupiter during morning twilight on Oct. 11. Mercury then disappears into the solar glare as it travels behind the sun in relation to earth.

Brilliant Venus hugs the southwestern horizon this month, appearing soon after sunset. A small telescope will show its gibbous phase. Scientists are aware of nearly 2,000 volcanoes on the surface of Venus, the second brightest object in our nighttime sky, after the moon.

Reddish Mars glows in the south-southwest as the evening sky darkens. It will become dimmer as the month progresses. On Oct. 6, Mars passes very close to the top star in the Sagittarius Teapot. Surface features on the Red Planet are no longer visible in small telescopes as they were during May’s opposition.

Jupiter emerges from the solar glare during the second week of October. Look for it low in the east just before sunrise. It will rise higher in the sky each day throughout the month. On the morning of Oct. 11, Mercury will appear just to the left of Jupiter, low in the eastern morning twilight 30 minutes before sunrise.

Saturn glows steadily in the southwestern sky at dusk, above the red supergiant star Antares. Both of these objects sink lower each night throughout the month. Bright Venus passes directly between them on the evening of Oct. 27, very low in the southwest. Saturn’s rings are still open at 26 degrees from edge on.

Editor’s note: This monthly guide to the stars is from the Marshall Martz Memorial Astronomical Association and the Post -Journal. For further information, contact the M.M.M.A.A. at www.martzobservatory.org.