OK, this is it as far as I'm concerned: The best stargazing of the year in Western Pennsylvania.

Oh sure, it's still cold, but the evening viewing is just fantastic in Butler skies. Bundle up with that thermos of something warm and prepare to be dazzled. If you're not already out there, drive out in the countryside to see the show. There's still plenty to see, though, even if you do have some city lights to deal with.

Another monthly pest for stargazing is the full moon, which will happen Feb. 9. Later this week, the moon will start drowning out the night sky with its "second-hand sunshine," but there's something special and romantic about the full moon close to Valentine's Day!

During February, Venus will once again be dazzling us in the early evening southwest sky.

Hands down it's the brightest starlike object you'll see in the sky this month for a couple of reasons.

First of all, sunlight really bounces off Venus's highly reflective atmosphere, and secondly, Venus is getting closer and closer to the Earth this month. Right now, Venus is about 51 million miles from Earth, but by the end of the month, it will only be about 34 million miles away. Venus travels faster than Earth in its own orbit around the sun, which lies within Earth's orbit around our home star.

Right now, Venus and Earth are on the same side of the sun, but because of Venus' more rapid pace, it will pass by Earth next month and make its closest approach to us.

Venus is so bright right now that it will cast a faint shadow if you're really out in the boonies. Despite its brightness, don't expect to see much on Venus through a telescope because it has a very thick obscuring atmosphere.

One thing that's kind of neat, though, is that because of its orbital mechanics, it goes through phase changes just like the moon. This month Venus is crescent shaped.

The main stargazing show this month is in the southern skies. Face that way, and you'll get an eyeful of what I call "Orion and his gang."

I just love, love, love this part of the heavens, especially the majestic constellation Orion the Hunter, with its three distinctive belt stars and the bright stars Rigel and Betelgeuse.

Below the belt of Orion is the wonderful Great Orion Nebula, a huge cloud of hydrogen gas and dust more than 1,500 light years away, where new stars and solar systems are being born. You can easily see it with your naked eyes, as it looks like a fuzzy star.

Binoculars and telescopes reveal a lot more of its natural beauty, and you can even see four stars arranged in a trapezoid that were born out of the nebulae not more than 10 million years ago — and believe me, for stars, that's really young!

Surrounding the great constellation Orion the Hunter are other bright shiners in neighboring constellations like Taurus the Bull, Auriga the Chariot Driver, Gemini the Twins, and the Big Dog Canis Major with the bright star Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky anytime of the year. Sirius is a Greek name that means "the scorcher." Again, I just love this part of the heavens!

In the northern sky, the Big Dipper is standing up on its handle, and Cassiopeia the Queen is high in the north near the overhead zenith. It is as bright as the Big Dipper and looks like an upside down "W" that outlines the throne of Queen Cassiopeia. The queen is tied up in her throne because she bragged that she was more beautiful than Hera, the Queen of the Greek gods and the owner of the largest ego in history.

In the eastern sky, there's a sign of spring. Look for the diagonal backward question mark that outlines the chest and head of Leo the Lion. The bright star at the bottom of the question mark is Regulus.

Leo will eventually lead in the springtime constellations, as well as the planet Saturn that rises behind it about 8:30 p.m.

Saturn is a wonderful telescope target, but from last year into this year, it has lost some of its luster. The gorgeous ring system on Saturn is nearly on edge from our view on Earth, making it really tough to see and enjoy. It's still worth a gander though.

Mike Lynch is an amateur astronomer and professional broadcast meteorologist for WCCO Radio in Minneapolis and is author of the book, "Pennsylvania Starwatch," available at bookstores and at his Web site www.lynchandthestars.com.