Q. What are the two bright stars or planets we've been seeing at dusk toward the southwest?

Gerry Hazel, Miami

A. You're seeing the planets Jupiter and Venus; the latter is the brighter of the two. They make a spectacular combination with the crescent moon.

Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and has 67 named moons, but many are really tiny. With only a pair of binoculars, on a clear evening you can pick out some of the four largest: Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.

After the moon, Venus is the brightest object in the night sky. (Sirius, the dog star, is the brightest star.) When she appears in the evenings, she's known as the Evening Star; she's the Morning Star when she appears just before dawn.

Learn more about star gazing at skyandtelescope.com.

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