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 constellation Aquarius is in the east and southeast at dawn tomorrow. One of its most interesting features is a star system known as WASP-69. It has a giant planet that is so close to the star that the planet is vaporizing from the intense heat.
The crescent Moon snuggles close to two of the three largest planets in the solar system early this evening. The largest, Jupiter, looks like a brilliant star below the Moon. Uranus, the third-largest, is above Jupiter, but you need binoculars to see it.
The planet Jupiter stands to the upper left of the crescent Moon early this evening. It looks like a brilliant star. Through binoculars, you can also spot the giant planet Uranus just above Jupiter. The Moon will huddle close to both planets tomorrow night.
Today’s total solar eclipse will be visible from a narrow path that stretches from Eagle Pass, Texas, to Houlton, Maine. Skywatchers in the rest of the contiguous U.S. will see a partial eclipse, with the Moon covering only part of the Sun’s disk.
The Moon will pass directly between Earth and the Sun tomorrow, creating a total eclipse. The sky will grow dark, with a pink glow at the horizon. Stars and planets will pop into view, and the Sun’s faint outer atmosphere will form silvery ribbons around the Mon.
For those inside the path of Monday’s total solar eclipse, it’s safe to look at the Sun when it’s fully eclipsed. At all other stages of the eclipse, the Sun is much too bright to view directly. Use certified eclipse glasses or other proper eye protection.
Look for Leo, the lion, high in the east as night falls. If you have a dark sky and a good pair of binoculars or a small telescope, you can find the spiral galaxies M65 and M66 within its borders. They should appear in the same field of view.
Hercules climbs into view in the northeast in late evening. Look for a lopsided square of stars called the Keystone, which represents the body of Hercules. One of his arms stretches to the right.
Gamma-2 Velorum is the brightest star of the constellation Vela, the sail of the ship Argo, which is quite low in the south at nightfall. It is the nearest Wolf-Rayet star, which has blown off its outer layers to reveal its inner workings.
The constellation Vela, the sail of the ship Argo, peeks just above the southern horizon at nightfall. Although it is too faint to see, one of the largest individual objects in the night calls Vela home: the Vela Nebula, the remains of an exploded star.
