Skywatch: What’s happening in the heavens in May Blaine P. Friedlander Jr. Venus and sun as it sets in the west-northwest. The fleet Mercury — at zero magnitude, bright enough to see in the dark heavens — climbs the western sky until the middle of May, when it appears to retreat again toward the western horizon to greet Venus (-3.8 magnitude, very bright) — leading to a conjunction May 29, according to the U.S. Naval Observatory. The new moon occurs May 11, but you probably won’t be able to see the skinny young moon until May 13, when it nudges Mercury low on the western horizon just after dusk.