Start the month out with a close pass between Mars and Saturn, which will be in conjunction shortly before dawn on April 5. Venus, shining brightly, will be nearby as well, and will be hard to miss. Jupiter will eventually join the party, and the four planets form a neat line by mid-April.

Starting on April 15, look up for a chance to catch a fireball as the Lyrid meteor shower, which appears to come from the constellation Lyra, begins. The meteor shower, which happens yearly as the Earth’s orbit takes it through the debris trail from Comet Thatcher, is visible all around the world, though the show tends to be better in the Northern Hemisphere. A bright Moon will block out some of the show, but be sure to step outside the night of April 21-22 for your best chance to view the Lyrids. They’re still one of the best meteor showers of 2022. You can see meteors all night, but the Lyrids tend to peak around dawn, so stay up as long as you can for the best views, including some spectacular glowing gas trails!

For a more rare sight, it’s possible that we may be able to see Comet C/2021 O3 (PanSTARRS) on April 21. The comet will be passing close to the Sun that day, and could get as bright as fourth magnitude, making it visible to the naked eye. We’ll have to wait and see — look to the west-northwest sky after sunset that day for a potential comet sighting.

Then, at the end of April, Jupiter will near Venus in the east-southeast sky, with their closest conjunction on April 30. Also on the 30th, skywatchers in parts of South America (or a lucky few on a cruise in the far South Pacific) will get the chance to see a partial solar eclipse.

Deep-Sky Objects to See in April

Pleiades Star Cluster

For observers in the Northern Hemisphere, April will be one of your last chances to see the famous Seven Sisters in the night sky until next winter. The Pleiades star cluster – perhaps the world’s most famous star cluster – appears as a hazy collection of stars located in the constellation Taurus.  One of the nearest clusters to Earth, the Pleiades actually boast a mass of more than 800 suns. And while the Pleiades is visible to the naked eye, a good telescope will unlock far richer details, letting you see many more of the stars within.

On April 4 and 5, the Pleiades will appear in the sky near both the crescent Moon and the Hyades star cluster, making a magnificent night-sky sight.

In celebration of Easter, observe this egg-shaped emission nebula in the constellation Cassiopeia! Visible to observers in the Northern Hemisphere, as well as some in the tropical regions of the Southern Hemisphere, the Bubble Nebula, or NGC 7635, is a cloud of dust and gas blown out by a young, very active star, glowing from its radiation.

Tarantula Nebula

For those in the Southern Hemisphere, check out the Tarantula Nebula! Thought to be the most active starburst region in any nearby galaxy, this bright, complex area of star formation is also host to SN 1987A, the closest supernova observed since the invention of the telescope.