Clear January nights are a good time to start having a look at the sky. In this video Jane Houston Jones shows how four planets will, each in turn, be showing up near the Moon. That's a good way to find the planets, because we all know what the Moon looks like.

The page is from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California and is pitched at North Americans. Other people will also be able to see the sky, but the timings will be different. I'll be putting up links to good guides for other places.

Get some ideas about what you might see in the winter sky.

Absolute Beginners - Winter Skies
Many bright stars sparkle in the sky on crisp winter evenings. Brightest of all is Sirius the Dog Star, the face of one of the two dogs of Orion the hunter. The belt of Orion himself is an easily-identified feature and the constellation also has both a red supergiant star and a blue one.

Brian Ventudo, the One-Minute Astronomer, is a Canadian who writes about astronomy, and is an enthusiastic amateur astronomer. Click here to find out what's up in the sky this month, including helpful diagrams and pictures. Some of the events he mentions are at specific times, and he gives those in UTC. At this time of year that is the same as GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). GMT is five hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time and eight hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time.

The Society for Popular Astronomy has a section for Young Stargazers. Any beginners would find it useful, as Robin Scagell takes you through the basics and says what's up this month. One of the things you might see - with binoculars - is Comet Lovejoy.

Watch for Venus and Mercury at sunset. Venus is unmissable, as it's very bright. Mercury is usually really hard to see, but it's near Venus, so that makes it simple. Here's a picture of Venus and Mars at sunset taken last night. Sadly, not by me. I haven't seen much of the Sun recently. On the days when we've had sunsets, a strategically-placed hill has ensured that Venus and Mercury weren't in sight. (But I did see Mars twice.)

The two planets will be loser together tomorrow night, so if clouds get in your way tonight, it'll be even better tomorrow.

I haven't yet put in recommendations for people in the southern hemisphere. That isn't my prejudice, just my ignorance. But an Australian astronomer recommends this Aussie sky guide by Ian Musgrave. It alerts you to some of the interesting events of the year.

Venus around sunset, low in the western sky, is brilliant. I live near the flightpath of a major international airport, and I can tell you that approaching aircraft are not nearly as bright as the planet. You can see why, when Venus is low and bright like this, that it keeps getting reported as a UFO! Here's some help on that: How to Tell a Planet from a UFO. LOL.

Hey Mona-

I'm in Chicago & for the past few nights, my 5 year old has been waking up and stating that the large star outside her West View Window is interrupting her rest. I think it is a planet. Could you tell me who would be peaking at us right now?

Yvonnie, if you're seeing this bright object during the night, I'd be amazed if it were anything other than Jupiter. Venus is much brighter, but it's quite low in the sky and is setting soon after the Sun goes down.

Jupiter, Earth and Sun will be nicely lined up this Friday, the 6th. It's called opposition. (More about this in Syzygy - When Heavenly Bodies Align.) Jupiter won't get any closer to us until 2019. But, in fact, it's been very bright for a few months and will stay bright for some while after opposition.

Where I was over Christmas, my window faces southwest and sometimes Jupiter was almost like a beacon in the dark sky. Currently, Jupiter rises around sunset and sets around sunrise, so it's visible all night long. Only the Moon outshines it once Venus has set.

To all readers: If you want to check what you're seeing in the sky, the Heavens above website includes an interactive sky chart in the ASTRONOMY section. When you get onto the site, choose your location - a nearby city will do. Then you can change the time and date of the star map as you please.

Jupiter is at opposition tonight – February 6, 2015. That means that Jupiter, the Earth and the Sun are aligned. (A syzygy! See Syzygy – Syzygy - When Heavenly Bodies Align. Jupiter will not be this close to us again until 2019.) This lovely photo from Italy also shows some of Jupiter's moons.

I'll have to check it out. Thanks for the info Mona. BTW...Nice Pintrest page!