Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, and moon to put on rare spectacle in sky

"This arrangement will be visible all around the world, from city and countryside alike," Phillips explained in a NASA announcement. "The moon, Venus and Jupiter are the brightest objects in the night sky; together they can shine through urban lights, fog, and even some clouds."

If you are eager to see the planets and moon, but have cloudy or rainy weather, the online skywatching website Slooh.com will provide a free webcast of the planetary show on Saturday and Sunday each night beginning at 9:30 p.m. EST (0230 GMT) at this website: http://events.slooh.com/

Under an earthshine moon

Planets aside, the moon is offering a dazzling sight of its own. The skinny crescent moon offers skywatchers a good chance to see the ghostly glow of earthshine — light from the sun that is reflected off of Earth to illuminate the dark portion of the moon in its current phase.

Meanwhile, Jupiter and Venus are steadily drawing ever closer together in the night sky.

By late February, the two planets will creep within 10 degrees of each other in the sky; close enough that you can block them with a closed fist held out at arm's length. On March 12 and 13, Venus and Jupiter will be so close they can be covered by just your fingertips, according to a NASA video.

f you snap an amazing photo of Jupiter, Venus the moon or any other skywatching target and would like to share it for a possible story or image  gallery, please send images and your comments to SPACE.com managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.

You can follow SPACE.com Managing Editor Tariq Malik on Twitter @tariqjmalik. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.

• See Venus and Jupiter In HD With Just Your Naked Eyes
• Planets Venus and Jupiter Own the Night (Infographic)
• Photos: Moon & Venus Dazzle in Skywatcher Views (Jan. 2012)

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