The moon dominates our evening skies this weekend, into next week. It appears first Friday night, crescent. Its cusps are barely noticeable, as it gets closer to First Quarter phase.

First quarter phase is Sunday night. The moon appears beneath the bright star Regulus, the principal star in the zodiacal constellation Leo and not too far east of the considerably brighter planet Jupiter.

These three celestial objects form a loose triangle. Distance is everything in the overnight sky. Some objects look closer than they are. The moon is less than a quarter million miles away, and that makes it our closest celestial neighbor. Regulus, the star, isn’t so close. It is 79 light years away. Light from that bright star shows up overhead, after completing a 79 year journey. Among stars in the night sky, this one is a close neighborhood.

Jupiter is far too, but only in reference to other planets in our solar system. Jupiter is 502 million miles away. It takes light more than a half hour to get to us. For comparison, light from the sun has to travel eight minutes before reaching us.

The ringed planet Saturn is in opposition Friday, closer to the earth than at any time this year. Saturn rises in the east at about the same time as the sun sets in the west. You’ll find the planet low in the southeastern sky, in the zodiacal constellation Scorpius. Saturn is 877 million miles away, close for an outer planet. It takes light more than an hour to make the journey here.

For those with a telescope, the planet is about as big as it gets. Plus, the rings of the planet are widely tilted for excellent viewing.