Once the Virgin Island Sun sets and the sky grows dark, high overhead you will find three bright stars are dominating the sky. Since these three form a large triangle which is visible during the Summer months, up North, they are called the Summer Triangle. Each bright star marks a different, star group or constellation. Brightest and highest in the sky is Vega, in Lyra the Harp. In mythology this is the harp invented by Hermes, which Mercury gave to Orpheus, the musician who joined Jason and the Argonauts. On another occasion Orpheus took his into the infernal regions and charmed Pluto, king of Hades, with the music of his harp to win back his lost bride Eurydice.

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Any time is a wonderful time to be in the Virgin Islands. This time of this year is a great time to spend some time at night sky watching. Once another beautiful Virgin Island day has ended, the Sun has set, and the sky has grown dark, look overhead and you will see a bright, red, star-like object. This is not a star at all but the planet Mars.

If you look slightly northwest of Mars you will find two bright stars of about the same brightness. These are Pollux and Castor and mark the head of the Gemini Twins. If you know the name Gemini, it is probably because it is one of the twelve constellations that form a band which encircles the sky, the zodiac. It is to the zodiac that we must look to see the planets. Moving eastward along the zodiac, we next come to Aries, the Ram. There are no bright stars to be seen here and thus Aries is usually difficult to find, but since Mars is currently seen against the background of stars of Aries, once you locate Mars you have found Aries. If you look still farther East, you will come to a bright star, Regulus, the red heart of Leo, the Lion.

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