Beijing, China
The sky above Beijing tonight
Tonight Beijing gets dark around 6:11 PM and light again by 5:44 AM. The moon is 48% lit.
What to look for
The space station returns
Wednesday, 5:02 AMIt climbs from the northwest, crosses partway up, and sets toward the southeast.
Space station·Peaks 44° up · 6 min·6 min
Seven astronauts, four hundred kilometres up, moving at eight kilometres a second. It looks like a bright star that refuses to twinkle, sliding silently across the sky. Start watching low in the northwest a minute early; it will climb to partway up in the southwest, then fade out as it enters Earth's shadow near the southeast. No telescope, no app pointed at the sky, just look up.
The space station
Tomorrow, 4:12 AMIt climbs from the northwest, crosses partway up, and sets toward the east.
Space station·Peaks 37° up · 6 min·6 min
Seven astronauts, four hundred kilometres up, moving at eight kilometres a second. It looks like a bright star that refuses to twinkle, sliding silently across the sky. Start watching low in the northwest a minute early; it will climb to partway up in the north, then fade out as it enters Earth's shadow near the east. No telescope, no app pointed at the sky, just look up.
The space station returns
Tomorrow, 5:49 AMIt climbs from the west, crosses low, and sets toward the south.
Space station·Peaks 25° up · 5 min·5 min
Seven astronauts, four hundred kilometres up, moving at eight kilometres a second. It looks like a bright star that refuses to twinkle, sliding silently across the sky. Start watching low in the west a minute early; it will climb to low in the southwest, then fade out as it enters Earth's shadow near the south. No telescope, no app pointed at the sky, just look up.
The moon
Rises tomorrow, 12:08 AMA last quarter, 44% lit.
Moon·Last quarter, 44%
It rises later tonight, so the early hours stay dark and clear. That sharp line splitting its light from its dark, the terminator, is where the sun is setting on the moon right now. You're watching a lunar sunset in slow motion.
Saturn
Any time it's darkSaturn is out, low in the east. A soft gold; its rings need a small telescope.
Planet·Magnitude 0.4, sets later
Find Saturn low in the east. No telescope needed, just your eyes; planets don't twinkle the way stars do, they hold a steady, unwavering light. The light reaching your eye left Saturn about 71 minutes ago.
On the horizon
The Leonids peak
In 14 nights, up to 15 meteors an hour: quick meteors capable of rare, dramatic storms.
All times are local to Beijing. Last updated at 9:49 AM.
Live countdowns, a compass showing where to point, and an alert a few minutes before the space station passes over. Free, no signup.