February’s night sky gives us the bright trio of Mars, Jupiter and Venus, according to NASA skywatch experts. “Venus blazes at its brightest for the year after sunset, then Mars and Jupiter will rule the night amid the menagerie of bright winter stars,” the U.S. space agency said in its February blog, which gives a summary of sky events.

A shortcut for New Yorkers to spot some of the planets is to look for them when they are near the moon. On Feb. 1, Venus will appear just above the crescent moon. On the third day of the month, Neptune will appear under Venus. Mars will appear near the moon on Feb. 9.

An extraordinary astronomical phenomenon will illuminate the sky as stargazers are urged to look up to catch a glimpse of the event.