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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report through May 14th, 2020. Here’s what’s happening in the skies of southern California.

The planet Venus blazes in the western sky after sunset. Each evening, it appears a little lower in the sky than it did the day before; between the 7th and the 14th, the setting time of Venus advances from 8:35 to 8:24 p.m. Over that same week, its elevation in the west-northwest drops from 32 to 27 degrees at sunset. This daily descent is the result of the swift motion of Venus along its orbit as it overtakes slower-moving Earth. The orbit of Venus is closer to the sun than Earth’s and is contained within Earth’s orbit. Early next month, Venus will appear to pass the sun and will switch its location from the evening to the morning sky.

Because of the relative proximity of Venus, the use of almost any optical aid will help you to see the planet’s crescent phase. Try observing its crescent by using binoculars, held steadily, or a telescope.

The moon’s phase wanes from full on the 7th, when it is visible all night, to last quarter on the 14th, when it rises at 1:17 a.m. The moon passes the bright star Antares, in the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion, on the 8th.

At dawn, the brilliant cream-colored planet Jupiter and the golden-hued planet Saturn gleam in the south as an eye-catching pair, separated from one another by five degrees. They are located to the left of the teapot-shaped pattern of stars that distinguish the constellation Sagittarius the Archer.

Use binoculars to glimpse Jupiter’s four largest moons. They should appear as small star-like points clustered around the bright planet. Observing Saturn’s rings will require the aid of a more powerful telescope.

If you follow an imaginary line connecting Jupiter to Saturn and extend it to the left, your eye will be lead to the bright orange gleam of the planet Mars in the southeast. Mars moves from the backdrop of the faint stars assigned to the constellation Capricornus the Sea Goat to those of Aquarius the Water-Carrier on the 9th.

Mars is still too low in the sky and too far away now for us to expect to see much detail on its surface through small telescopes. Gradually, however, as it draws toward its close passage by Earth in October, the prospects for observing surface markings on Mars should greatly improve.

The waxing gibbous moon appears below Jupiter and Saturn on the 12th. The last-quarter moon draws close to Mars on the 14th.

Because of measures in place that are intended to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 Corona virus, Griffith Observatory and its grounds are closed until further notice. Consequently, all public telescopes are closed, and all public events have been cancelled. Please check the Griffith Observatory homepage for current information and continued updates of the situation.

Follow The Sky Report, All Space Considered, and Griffith Observatory, on Twitter for updates on astronomy and space-related events.

From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook, and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com.