Scorpius and Sagittarius highlight July nights, scooting low across the south. Antares highlights the scorpion’s hook-shaped body, with teapot-shaped Sagittarius to its left. Under dark skies, the Milky Way rises from the teapot’s spout like steam. Meanwhile, the Big Dipper stands high in the north and northwest during the evening, with its handle to the upper left and bowl to the lower right.
The full Moon of July is known as the Hay Moon, Thunder Moon, or Apollo Moon.
Perigee July 13
Apogee July 25
Moon phases are Central Time.
August 1 is the date of an ancient English festival, Lammas. It is a cross-quarter day, which falls roughly half way between a solstice and an equinox. Lammas was a day for celebrating the harvest. Priests blessed the bread made from the first grain.
The Big Dipper hangs by its handle on summer evenings, as though about to scoop up a dipperful of stars. The handle is anchored by Alkaid, a star that is much bigger, heavier, brighter, and hotter than the Sun.
About 2,000 years from now, Earth’s north pole will aim toward the star Gamma Cephei instead of Polaris, the current North Star. Gamma Cephei is one of the brightest stars of Cepheus, which is in the northeast this evening.
Vindemiatrix, the third-brightest star of Virgo, is in the southwest at nightfall. It is far to the upper right of Spica, Virgo’s brightest star. Vindemiatrix is a bloated star that has completed the “normal” portion of its life.
Albireo represents the beak of Cygnus, the swan, which is in good view on summer nights. The constellation is high in the east at nightfall, with its body parallel to the horizon. Bright Deneb is at the left end of the body, with Albireo at the right.
Mars and the full Moon stick close together tonight. Mars looks like a brilliant orange star, outshining all but the Moon and the planet Venus. It perches close to the lower right of the Moon at nightfall.
The Moon will pass through Earth’s shadow tomorrow, creating an eclipse, although it won’t be visible from the U.S. Our consolation is that the Moon will be close to Mars. It looks like a brilliant orange star, to the lower left of the Moon at nightfall.
Mars is at opposition this week, passing closer to Earth than it will for many years. It is in the southeast as night falls. It looks like a brilliant orange star, outshining all but the Moon and the planet Venus.
The planet Saturn is the bright star-like point of light just below the Moon at nightfall. Its broad, bright rings are tilted into good view, so they reflect a lot of sunlight, enhancing the giant planet’s luster.
Mars blazes across the sky this week. It rises around sunset and is in view all night. It is brightest for the year, too. In fact, for the next couple of months it will be the third-brightest object in the night sky, after the Moon and Venus
