Hercules
Hercules the strongman poses low in the east-northeast at nightfall and soars high across the sky later on. It’s marked by a lopsided square of stars known as the Keystone. None of the stars of Hercules is all that bright.
Dragon’s Eyes
The eyes of Draco, the dragon, stare down from the northeast as night falls. They are above brilliant Vega, one of the night sky’s most prominent stars. The brighter eye is the star Eltanin. The other eye, Rastaban, is just above Eltanin.
Disappearing Dog
As night falls, look in west for Procyon, the brightest star of Canis Minor, the little dog. It’s to the lower left of much brighter Jupiter, the Sun’s largest planet. Procyon sets by about midnight.
Black-Eye Galaxy
A beautiful spiral galaxy in the constellation Coma Berenices has a black eye. M64, the Black Eye galaxy, has a prominent dark band below its nucleus. The band is a lane of dust, which is the likely residue from a smaller galaxy that M64 gobbled up.
Northern Crown
The modest constellation Corona Borealis, the northern crown, climbs the eastern sky this evening. It is a delicate semicircle of seven stars that really does resemble a crown.
Centaurus
Centaurus, the centaur, hugs the southern horizon this month. It stands due south in late evening. The brightest star of Centaurus that is visible from the United States is Theta Centauri.
Eta Aquariid Meteors
The Eta Aquariid meteor shower is at its best now. The shower’s peak lasts for several nights, centered around tomorrow night. At its best, the shower can produce a few dozen meteors per hour.
Moon and Antares
Antares, the bright heart of the scorpion, is a skosh away from the Moon as they climb into good view by midnight. They will still be close as dawn twilight erases the scorpion’s mighty heart from view.
Leo
Most of the star pictures in the night sky look nothing like their namesakes. But one beautiful exception lunges across the southwestern sky on May evenings: Leo, the lion. It’s high in the sky at nightfall.
May Day
In the British Isles, today is known as May Day. It is a cross-quarter day, which comes about half way between a solstice and an equinox. In centuries past, this date marked the end of spring and the beginning of summer.