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 Moon stages another beautiful encounter early this evening. It lines up with the planet Jupiter and the star Spica, the leading light of the constellation Virgo. Jupiter is by far the brighter of the two, with Spica close to its lower left.
NGC 6946 is both beautiful and busy. It’s a spiral galaxy that we see face-on. Over the last century, astronomers have recorded 10 supernova explosions in the galaxy, with the most recent just three months ago. So NGC 6946 is also called the Fireworks galaxy.
A faint scientific instrument scoots low across the south at this time of year. Microscopium was one of 12 constellations created by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in the 18th century. Its stars are quite meager, so you need dark skies and a starchart to pick it out.
The Moon will pass directly between Earth and Sun today, creating a total solar eclipse from Oregon to South Carolina. Day will turn to night, and stars and planets will pop into view. From the rest of the country, the Moon will cover only a portion of the Sun.
The Moon will eclipse the Sun tomorrow, briefly turning day to night across part of the United States. It’s completely safe to look at the Sun when it is fully eclipsed, but not at other times; it’s so bright that it can damage your eyes.
The Great American Eclipse is coming up on Monday. The Moon will briefly cover the Sun, turning day to night across a narrow slice of the United States. The rest of the country will see a partial eclipse, with the Moon covering only a portion of the Sun’s disk.
Venus, the “morning star,” looks down on the Moon at first light tomorrow. The Moon is headed toward an even more spectacular encounter on Monday, when it will cross in front of the Sun, creating a total solar eclipse.
The “morning star” stands to the lower left of the crescent Moon before dawn tomorrow. Although it looks like a brilliant star, it’s really Venus, our nearest planetary neighbor.
Skywatchers along a narrow path across the U.S. will see a rare sight on Monday: the Sun’s corona, its hot, faint outer atmosphere. It will look like a silvery curtain around the Sun during a solar eclipse, which will be visible from Oregon to South Carolina.
The Moon will pass several bright objects over the next week. Tomorrow, bright Aldebaran, the eye of the bull, will stand just above the Moon at first light. And on Friday and Saturday, the Moon will pass by the planet Venus, the “morning star.”
