Professor Mark Sims on the discovery that Beagle 2 made it to the surface

Find a location that offers you an unobstructed view of the horizon from south to southwest an hour after sunset. With clear skies, you’ll be able to follow Venus and Mars from night to night on their celestial peregrinations through the constellations of Sagittarius and Capricornus. The two planets almost keep pace with each other throughout the remainder of November.

Observers in Western Europe should look to the east an hour before sunrise on Monday, 18 September to see not only dazzling Venus and the old crescent Moon in the same binocular field of view, but planets Mars and Mercury against the stars of Leo too.

NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity has begun the steep ascent of an iron-oxide-bearing ridge that’s grabbed scientists’ attention since before the car-sized rover’s 2012 landing.