April 2026: Scales and Scorpions

Leon and Shana share the April edition of Audio Guide to the Galaxy, a stargazing companion for Perth (WA), starting in the western sky at sunset where bright Venus returns to the evening sky and Jupiter sits slightly northwest. After dark, Orion is highlighted as a useful pattern for spotting satellites by repeatedly checking for new, steady lights moving through the constellation, with a challenge to beat 40 satellites in an hour. As Orion sets, Scorpius rises in the east, identified by the slightly red star Antares, with a close Moon–Antares pairing before sunrise on 7 April. They note that before sunrise around 16 April, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn are visible in the east (with Neptune and Uranus requiring a telescope), and mention International Day of Human Space Flight on 12 April and Earth Day on 22 April. The constellation of the month is faint Libra above Scorpius, including discussion of the planet-hosting red dwarf Gliese 581 about 20 light years away and a message beamed there expected to arrive around 2030.