For the first astronomy event you can see this year, there’s a meteor shower to look for. The Quadrantids, the first meteor shower of the year, is expected to peak in the morning of January 4th. ☄️

That morning, look for a maximum of 80 meteors per hour radiating from a point in the northern sky. It’s important to note that the Quadrantids, while an active shower, may see maximum activity for only a few hours on the peak night – or in this year’s case, morning. 💫

In 2023, I ticked an item off my astronomy bucket list when I finally spotted Mercury for the first time – with my unaided eye one morning in the Maldives. If you want a chance to do the same (though admittedly not in the Maldives!), mark the morning of January 7th on your calendar, as this is when the tiny planet reaches its morning peak 15° above the southwestern horizon. 🪐

Mercury will continue to sit this high above the horizon for several mornings on either side of the 7th (the 5th-9th), so you can take a few opportunities if the skies aren’t agreeable on this morning specifically. 🌗

In the pre-dawn hours of January 16th, Venus will be a guide to Ceres if the conditions are right (and you live at the correct longitude): at their closest, Venus will be 9’22” south of Ceres. You’ll definitely need equipment to spot tiny Ceres (though obviously Venus is easy to see with the unaided eye) and a star-finder app will help too if you’re not sure exactly what you’re looking for (like me!). 🌎

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