DENVER -- I'm sure many people are glad to see 2008 in the rear-view mirror. That was a very tough year for almost everyone. As bad as 2008 was though, I'll always remember it as the year that brought me back to Colorado.

In 2003, I worked as the weekend weather anchor for KREX-TV in Grand Junction. I was just barely out of college and extremely happy to have a job in the TV business. I remember talking on-air about weather on the Front Range and thinking, "How cool would it be to work in Denver someday?"

Well, fast forward a few years and amazingly that day actually happened. It was a whirlwind end to 2008 trying to move from Washington to Colorado, but I'm finally feeling a little settled in here at 7News.

I honestly haven't had any time to sit down and make any resolutions for 2009, but I know one thing I plan to do much more of this year: star gazing!

Astronomers around the world hope you will also take a greater interest in looking up at the sky during 2009. This year has been dubbed the "International Year of Astronomy."

There are many events planned for the International Year of Astronomy. One is called "100 Hours of Astronomy." This will be a worldwide event on April 2-5. One of the primary goals is to have as many people as possible look through a telescope during the 100 hours. It will coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first astronomical observation through a telescope.

To read more about the International Year of Astronomy, you can go to astronomy2009.org.

A Peek at the Planets:

We've received several emails at the 24/7 Weather Center over the past few days wondering what the bright star or planet is in the southwestern sky. The planet is Venus and it's pretty tough to miss! Venus will continue to shine brightly throughout the month as it moves toward the WSW.

Mercury and Jupiter will also be visible in the southwest in the early evening through January 10th. They are lower in the horizon though than Venus and will drop out of view by the middle of the month.

Saturn will be visible in the late evening in the east. It should be easy to spot January 14-15 when a waning gibbous Moon passes nearby. Saturn will also be visible in the morning, especially at the end of the month in the WSW portion of the sky.

Mercury and Mars will make an appearance together in the ESE on January 25th. They will be low in the horizon though and a little challenging to find.

The Moon in Motion:

First Quarter: Sunday, January 4th
Full Moon: Saturday, January 10th
Last Quarter: Saturday, January 17th
New Moon: Monday, January 26th

From the History Books:

In January 1999, NASA launched the Mars Polar Lander. The lander was supposed to touch down near the planet's south pole, but the mission was unsuccessful.

The last transmission from the spacecraft was sent just before it entered the Mars atmosphere on December 3, 1999. NASA never received any further signals from the lander and does not know why it lost communication with the spacecraft. It is assumed that the lander crashed during its attempt to land on Mars.