3-Planet Monte, Meteors and the Mall

October features three-planet monte, Jupiter's reign over the evening sky and the Mall gaining a public observatory.

In the pre-dawn sky, find a clear view of the eastern horizon to see Mercury loitering between Venus and Saturn. Their movements over the next few weeks resemble the game three-card monte. This quick-changing, cosmic lineup remains visible for the next few days. On Oct. 8, Mercury, at zero magnitude (bright), conjuncts with Saturn, which is a first magnitude object less bright than Mercury.

The highest and brightest of the bunch now, Venus is a negative third magnitude, visibly brilliant object. But the eastern scene makes a rapid change, as Venus and Saturn sashay toward their conjunction Oct. 13. On the mornings leading to conjunction, see the two planets get closer. Then the effervescent Venus, albeit still visible, sinks toward the sun, while Saturn ascends the eastern heavens.

Jupiter -- a negative second magnitude planet -- climbs the southeast sky at dusk, commanding the southern heavens until hours before dawn. It sets in the southwest. By mid-October, this large gaseous planet will be high in the southern sky at dusk. Mars rises about 1 a.m. in the east-northeast, walking with the Gemini twins. By mid-month, the reddish planet (zero magnitude) moves away from the twins.

Thanks to a new moon, we get a dark sky and good viewing conditions for catching Orionid meteors that appear to emanate from the Orion constellation. The International Meteor Organization (http://www.imo.net/calendar/2009#ori) says this shower is expected to peak Oct. 21 at a possible rate of 30 meteors an hour. Bring a thermos of coffee, a comfy lawn chair and keep looking up. If you are lucky, you might see a few meteors each hour.

New Mall Observatory

See lunar craters, solar spots and other sky delights from the newest star on the Mall: a public observatory, adjacent to the National Air and Space Museum. It will be open Tuesdays through Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., weather permitting.

Even in daylight hours, visitors can view the planets Venus, Jupiter and Saturn. Plus, observe the sun in a telescope through special, safe filters. The museum has installed a Boller and Chivens 16-inch reflecting telescope, on loan from the Harvard-Smithsonian's Oak Ridge Observatory.

Concurrent with the observatory opening and Galileo's 400th anniversary of heavenly telescopic views, visit the Air and Space Museum to see a first edition of Galileo's Siderius Nuncius (Starry Messenger), published in 1610, the first scientific treatise based on telescopic observations. Siderius Nuncius will be on display at the museum's Explore the Universe gallery for three months.

Fall Back

A turn-back-the-clock heads-up: We get to snooze an extra hour as we return to Eastern Standard Time on Nov. 1 at 2 a.m., according to the U.S. Naval Observatory.