Mars Buzzes the Beehive

As December begins, the bright reddish planet Mars will be shining just above (or celestial north of) the large open star cluster in Cancer known as the Beehive, Praesepe, and Messier 44. Mars and the stellar “bees”, which will be scattered across an area more than twice the size of a full moon, will fit into the field of view in binoculars for several weeks. The planet will be closest to the cluster from Sunday to Friday and then increasingly farther above the cluster on the subsequent nights.