What's mildly amusing you today?

[Lamplighter]

OK, it's time right NOW if you're on the east coast of the US...

Go find Venus !

Go out around 4 p.m. local time on Monday, and position yourself
so that the sun is behind a chimney or rooftop to your right.
Blocking the sun is always essential if you're looking anywhere close to the sun.
WARNING: Never look directly at the sun with your unaided eye
or through binoculars or telescopes without special light filters. Severe eye damage can result.

Then face due south, and look two-thirds of the way up the sky towards overhead.
If the sky is clear, you should be able to clearly see the crescent moon.
Look just above the moon, and you should be able to see Venus as a tiny brilliant pinpoint of light.



If you have difficulty, try using binoculars to focus on the moon.
Before using binoculars, make doubly sure that the sun is still
safely behind the chimney or rooftop.
Always take extreme care when using binoculars in a daytime sky
and never point them at the sun without using a solar filter.

Venus is not the only object currently shining bright in the evening and nighttime sky.
Tonight, Venus will appear near the moon and Jupiter for the second night
in a row in an event that astronomers call a conjunction.

At sunset tonight, Venus will appear in the west just to the right
of the crescent moon with Jupiter shining below.
In the eastern night sky, Mars is also currently visible at night
and is unmistakeable due to its reddish hue.