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.
The planets Jupiter and Mars and the star Antares join the Moon at first light tomorrow. Jupiter is the brightest of the three, to the right of the Moon. Mars and Antares stack up to the lower left of the Moon, with Mars closer to the Moon.
The planet Jupiter is in great view at first light tomorrow. It stands to the lower left of the Moon, and looks like a brilliant star.
The extinct Musca Borealis, the northern fly, is high in the west in early evening. It was created centuries ago by a German astronomer. Astronomers no longer recognize the constellation. Its stars rest on the shoulder of present-day Aries, the ram.
The Moon climbs into good view by around 1 a.m. tonight, with a bright companion to its lower right: Spica, the brightest star of the constellation Virgo.
The meek constellation Caelus wheels across the south on February nights. It is due south a couple of hours after sunset, directly atop the horizon for those at the middle latitudes of the U.S. and a little higher for those farther south.
Today is Groundhog Day, which is a modern commemoration of a cross-quarter day. Such days come roughly half way between a solstice and an equinox. In many cultures, these dates represented the beginning of a season, not its mid-point.
Ceres, the largest member of the asteroid belt, is lining up opposite the Sun, so it is closest to Earth for the year, at more than 150 million miles. At that range it shines brightest, although not bright enough to see with the eye alone.
Orion climbs high across the south tonight. It’s marked by its three-star belt, with bright orange Betelgeuse to its upper left and blue-white Rigel to its lower right. And a giant stellar nursery lurks below the belt, known as the Orion Nebula.
The Moon will experience a spectrum of colors tonight. As the second full Moon of the month, it’s known as a Blue Moon. It won’t look blue, though. Instead, from most of the United States it will turn dark orange as it undergoes a total eclipse.
Castor, the fainter of the twins of Gemini, is about a third of the way up the eastern sky at nightfall, close to the upper left of Gemini’s brighter twin, Pollux. Tonight, the Moon will stand to the upper right of the twins.
