It is worth staying up for this pleasing view of the moon as it encounters Jupiter and the brightest stars of Gemini, the twins. The chart shows the view looking east from London at 00:30 BST in the very early morning of 14 October.
Gemini will have risen a little earlier and will now be visible until the dawn. So early risers, as well as night owls, will catch this conjunction. The two brightest stars of Gemini are Castor and Pollux, the twin half-brothers of Greek and Roman mythology.
The moon will be almost exactly at its last quarter phase, with 47% of its visible surface illuminated. This marks the transition between its waning gibbous phase, which follows directly after full moon, and its waning crescent phase, which precedes the new moon.
Jupiter remains a brilliant star-like object in the night sky, now rising in Gemini about midnight and being visible well into the morning twilight. On the morning of 14 October, it will be shining brightly below the moon.
The celestial meeting will also be visible from the southern hemisphere. Observers should look in the early hours of the morning towards the north-east part of the sky.
