When night falls and the clouds disperse for a clear sky, amazing things can shine. With each new year, a new assortment of events happen in the sky at night. From eclipses to spectacular moons, 2021 has a myriad of these events happening in space that we can see and admire.

Below are some of the most exciting events coming soon, according to the Space.com:

1. On March 5, Mercury and Jupiter will come together and meet in the sky. You’ll want to wake up about a half hour before sunrise to see this pair, and using binoculars will help you to see it clearly.
2. On May 25, a supermoon will light up the night sky, appearing much bigger than normal. This is when the moon is at its closest to us, which makes it appear bigger than a usual full moon. You won’t want to miss this event, which will be occurring around 11pm to midnight.
3. Twelve hours after the super moon, which means the next day, May 26, will see the moon undergoing a total lunar eclipse. Our location in the central states of America will allow us to “watch the start of the partial stages up to (or almost to) totality before the moon sets.” While our view won’t be as good as residents of Hawaii, if you stay up late enough–or wake up early enough–you’ll see a large part of this exciting event.
4. Getting into the summertime, on June 10 what is called the “Ring of Fire” solar eclipse will form in the sky. This term describes how the sun looks when the moon passes in front of it but does not fully cover it, creating a ring of sunlight that looks like a ring of fire in its place.
5. The night of August 11-12 will see the Perseid meteor shower, when what will look like dozens of shooting stars light up the night. The best time to see this meteor shower will be right around when the moon sets, or around 10pm local time.

Those are just a few of the numerous events happening in the sky this year. If you’re interested in learning more about events like these, visit Space.com for more information. If you’d like to see a calendar of every event, including full moons, visit in-the-sky.org.

Article by Claire Ellerman