Celestial treats to watch for from Seattle area in 2023

Our region’s night skies gave us plenty to wish for in 2022, from super moons and planetary alignments to meteor showers pushing worldly troubles from our minds.

With the help of EarthSky writer John Jardine Goss, we’ve rounded up 10 exciting celestial treats to wish on in the new year, plus our favorite Seattle-area skies captured by Seattle Times photographers this past year.

Nearly perfect viewing conditions for some of the most active meteor showers, a “ring of fire” solar eclipse and other stargazing events worth watching for with nothing more than a pair of binoculars and patch of clear sky await.

These sights will “get you thinking about life and our place in the universe,” Goss said. “When you see things like this, they really jump out at you. It lets you know that stuff is always happening up in the night sky.”

Click below or scroll down to navigate through the upcoming year:

January | March | April | June | July | August | October | December

Jan. 22: The goddess of love meets the ringed world

After inching closer to each other in the southwest sky each evening in January, Venus and Saturn will appear to brush past each other on Jan. 22. This will be the closest unaided-eye planetary conjunction of the year.

Staff photographer Jennifer Buchanan captured a full moon above T-Mobile Park on April 15, which equates to about a half degree of distance in the sky. On Jan. 22, Venus and Saturn will be less than a half degree apart, or just less than a full moon’s width apart, EarthSky reports.

Then, shortly after sunset on Jan. 23, watch the whisker-thin crescent moon join the planetary pair in a cosmic congress. Binoculars and backyard telescopes will help separate Saturn from the bright glare of Venus.

“I always, always recommend a pair of common household binoculars,” Goss said. “It’s the same binoculars you use to go bird-watching or take into sporting events.”

Jan. 30: A planet comes out of hiding

The end of January will mark the best chance to see the little planet of Mercury in the morning skies of the new year. Mercury will be at its farthest point from the sun at 25 degrees, making this elusive planet shine bright in the sky just before dawn.

March 1: A rendezvous of the brightest planets

On March 1, catch a glimpse as the two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, slide past each other on the dome of the sky shortly after sunset. Like in Venus and Saturn’s January rendezvous, Venus and Jupiter will pass less than a full moon’s width apart — close enough to see the disks of both planets in the same field of view through even the tiniest of backyard telescopes.

On Sept. 26, staff photographer Daniel Kim captured golden Jupiter as it was the closest to Earth it had been in nearly six decades.

April 21 and 22: Venus and friends

In April, Venus will guide viewers to some of stargazers’ favorite targets — the dipper-shaped Pleiades star cluster (also known as the Seven Sisters), and the larger V-shaped Hyades star cluster with its bright red foreground star, Aldebaran.

Adding to this trio of celestial jewels, a waxing crescent moon, like the one staff photographer Kylie Cooper captured on Sept. 2, will be aglow with light from the Earth shortly after sunset on April 21 and 22.

“Then this year with these objects, you also have Venus standing above them all, guarding the scene from overhead,” Goss said, “and it’s just striking. To me, it seems magical.”

Venus will lie only a mere 100 million miles away from Earth in April, while the Seven Sisters sit some 2.6 quadrillion miles away.

June 1 and 2: The planets and the bees

On Sept. 2, Kylie Cooper captured soaring wings over a setting sun at Gas Works Park.

Like the kite gliding across the sun, Mars will buzz the Beehive star cluster on June 1 and 2. Aim your binoculars west at the red planet about an hour after sunset to see the background sparkle of the Beehive.

“You’re looking at a planet, which is only many 10s of millions of miles away, and then you have a star cluster, which is close to 600 light years away,” Goss said.

One light year is 5.88 trillion miles, so “there’s quite a difference between the two. Yet, there’s the planet, superimposed over the star cluster.”

Venus will then take on the roll of queen bee when it passes through the Beehive on June 12 and 13, outshining the cluster.

“With binoculars, you can see this really well. If you’re from a dark sky site — not in Seattle, Eastern Washington perhaps — you can see this happening with the unaided eye” Goss said.

July 19, 20 and 21: A terrestrial assembly

On the evening of Dec. 13, Daniel Kim captured a scene of worldly treats; the last moments of sunlight that day as the fiery orb sunk beneath the clouds, a magnificent pink shadow of light across the water and a sailing ferry.

On the evenings of July 19, 20 and 21, the western sky will be full of celestial treats.

Venus will command the scene, shining brightly low in the west. Twinkling nearby will be the much dimmer Regulus, the brightest star in Leo. Further from the horizon will be Mars, and if the sky is very clear, viewers will be able to see Mercury in the twilight, hugging the horizon near where the sun disappeared.

This will place all the terrestrial planets together in the same area of the sky. Moving through this scene each night will be the waxing crescent moon.

Aug. 12 and 13: Prime time for the Perseids

“The Perseid meteor shower in August might just be the most famous,” Goss said, as summer weather conditions are typically ideal for viewing.

Every year in mid-August, the shower peaks, producing up to 100 meteors an hour, according to NASA. A waning crescent moon will allow even the dimmest of shooting stars to shine in 2023.

On Aug. 12 and 13, the shower is expected to peak between midnight to 3 a.m. in Seattle, according to the International Meteor Organization.

Staff photographer Dean Rutz visited Artist Point in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest just as the Perseids were beginning in 2022. With its panoramic views, Artist Point is a popular spot for astronomers and enthusiasts.

Oct. 14: A fiery partial solar eclipse

The sun, moon and Earth will be in almost perfect alignment on Oct. 14, resulting in a partial solar eclipse across the United States.

Although we’ll only be able to view the partial eclipse in the Seattle region, fortunate viewers along a narrow band running from Oregon into the Gulf of Mexico will see an annular eclipse. This is when the moon appears slightly smaller than the sun, leaving a brilliant ring of light around the eclipse known as the “ring of fire.”

On Oct. 1, Daniel Kim captured a fiery orange sky as the sun set behind the Space Needle. Now, imagine the Space Needle as the moon, and we experienced our own “ring of fire” sunset just this past year.

As with all solar eclipses, only view the event through proper solar filters.

People often think the sun is only just brighter than the full moon, Goss said. In reality, “the sun is 400 thousand times brighter than the sun. So, you must have the appropriate filters to look at this.”

Oct. 10, Nov. 19 and Dec. 9: Crescent moon meets Venus

Some of the most eye-catching sky sights are when the moon glows near the brightest planet, Venus. As dawn brightens on Oct. 10, Nov. 9 and Dec. 9, look toward the eastern horizon for a dramatic scene. Venus will be unmistakable next to the waning crescent moon to start your fall morning.

“Essentially, you have the two brightest objects in the night sky right next to each other, and that makes for a captivating scene and a neat way to start your day,” Goss said.

Dec. 13 and 14: Gems of the Geminids

Although the Perseids are arguably the most famous of the meteor showers, “the Geminids in December are actually a little bit more reliable,” Goss said.

Viewers will be able to catch up to 120 shooting stars each hour. The show starts at 8 p.m. for us in Seattle, “so you don’t have to get up at 2 a.m. to see these things,” Goss added.

Viewing conditions will be ideal with the new moon out of the sky entirely, leaving a dark scene for viewers to catch even the faintest shooting stars.

Daniel Kim captured the moon shortly after its new moon phase on Aug. 5. The Blue Angels appeared to soar right below the moon, making for a quintessential Seattle photo.