The exact day of the Lunar New Year changes each year —the months of the year are marked by moon cycles, so New Year is celebrated on the date of the first new moon of the Lunar calendar. The worlds will be positioned only about one degree apart—roughly equal to the width of your index finger held at arm’s length—allowing viewers with binoculars and even backyard telescopes to see both simultaneously. As soon as the sun drops below the southwestern horizon on February 22, look for a waxing crescent moon snuggling up to the king of the planets, Jupiter.

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Closer inspection with binoculars will reveal that the moon is also joined by the bright stars Castor and Pollux of the Gemini constellation. From a dark, unobstructed location, away from light pollution, you should be able to spot the dazzling cluster—which actually includes some 3,000 stars—with unaided eyes. Meteor watchers are in for a treat on the night of April 22 and into the early morning hours of April 23, as sky conditions should be nearly perfect for the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower.Reciprocal free admission into our temporary exhibitions for partner organisations, Museums Association and NMDC members is available Monday to Friday. Every mid-August, Earth slams into a cloud of small debris that was left behind by a comet, which produces a flurry of shooting stars as each little meteor burns up in the atmosphere.

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The shower's radiant—the point in the sky from which the meteors appear to originate—is its namesake constellation, Gemini, which rises above the eastern horizon after 9 p. The image was taken on assignment for a story in the June 1998 issue highlighting the beauty of the large state park.Songkran is celebrated across Thailand, with customs varying depending on the region of the country. Australian Geographic acknowledges the First Nations people of Australia as traditional custodians, and pay our respects to Elders past and present, and their stories and journeys that have lead us to where we are today. The path where it will be visible runs from Oregon down through Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Texas before crossing the Gulf of Mexico, and then over parts of Central America, and through Colombia and Brazil. Continue your journey online to discover the planet-positive actions you can take to safeguard the places and species you encounter. Venus will be easy to see with the naked eye as a brilliant, star-like object high in the southwestern sky.

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Andrew Fazekas, the Night Sky Guy, is the lead author of the National Geographic Stargazer’s Atlas and the best-selling second edition of The Backyard Guide to the Night Sky. Meaning ‘head of year’, this is a period of reflection, to atone for any wrongdoing throughout the year and to forgive others. Mercury will reach its highest point in the sky on this day, offering the best view of the planet all year. A teacher plays the piano for her kindergarten class in Tokyo, Japan, in an image taken for a story in the April 1990 issue on the traditional roles of Japanese women.If you follow the two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, during the first couple months, you will notice that they slowly converge in the southwestern sky.

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A woman sits on top of a large white anthill, some of which can rise up to 40 feet high, near Elizabethville in the former Belgian Congo. Traditions and customs vary from family to family, but symbolic foods are one of the central points for this time —pomegranate seeds, for example, are eaten for a year filled with good deeds.The previously unpublished photo was taken for a story in the December 2014 issue about how to sustain fishing communities in Southern Africa. Considered one of the most spectacular annual meteor showers, the Perseids regularly produce up to 60 shooting stars per hour. The image, published in National Geographic's Italian-language edition in March 2005, marks Museums and Galleries Month.