Beautiful Cygnus, the swan, returns to the evening sky this month. It rises in the northeast by about 11 p.m. Its brightest star is Deneb, which marks the swan's tail. Its body stretches to the right of Deneb, through the glow of the Milky Way.
Weekly Stargazing Tips
Provided by StarDate.org. Unless otherwise specified, viewing times are local time regardless of time zone, and are good for the entire Lower 48 states (and, generally, for Alaska and Hawaii).
May 16: Cygnus Returns
May 17: Disappearing Dog
As the last blush of evening twilight fades away, look almost due west for Procyon, the little dog star. It's not all that high in the sky, but if you have a clear horizon, it will stand out.
May 18: Mizar and Alcor
A horse and rider gallop across the north and northwest on May evenings. They are in the handle of the Big Dipper, which is high in the sky at nightfall. They're the stars Mizar and Alcor. Mizar is the brighter of the two, with fainter Alcor just a whisker away.
May 19: Moon and Spica
Spica, the brightest star of Virgo, stands close to the lower left of the Moon at nightfall. The Moon slides toward it during the night, so they are especially close as they set, in the wee hours of the morning.
May 20: Sun Rays
One of the icons of western movies is the sunset, with rays of sunlight radiating into the sky from behind mountains or clouds. They are called crepuscular rays, from the Latin word for twilight. They appear to converge at the Sun because of perspective.
May 21: Balanced Moon
The Moon is in a sort of cosmic balance tonight. It is passing through Libra, the balance scales, which is the only constellation of the zodiac that doesn't represent a living thing.
May 22: Man in the Moon
The features of the "man in the Moon" are a combination of dark, smooth volcanic plains and lighter jumbled areas. You can look for the face the next couple of nights because the Moon is full. The bright star Antares is to the lower left of the Moon this evening.