MILKY WAY — (FOX 17) — Each month, I discuss some of the sights you can see in the nighttime sky. This information is provided by Indiana University.
PLANETS: The bright planet Venus will be visible a little above the horizon all month. You can see it from just before sunset until about 90 minutes after. Meanwhile, Saturn will appear above the southwestern horizon about 45 minutes after sunset. The planet’s largest moon, Titan, will be above the planet on the 2nd and 18th and below it on the 10th and 26th. Around 3:30am, Jupiter will rise in the east followed by Mars 20 minutes later. Both planets will rise earlier as August progresses, such that by the end of the month, Jupiter will rise at 2:00am. Finally, Mercury is visible just above the east-northeastern horizon about 30 minutes before sunrise. However, it will only be visible until the middle of the month.
METEOR SHOWER: The annual Perseid meteor shower peaks on the night of August 11. Although you could see shooting stars all month, it is on this date that astronomers estimate there could be as many as 60 per hour away from city lights. The most favored time is after midnight.
MOON PHASES: The August new moon is on the 6th, followed by first quarter on the 14th. This month’s full moon is on the 20th, followed by the last quarter on the 28th.
To find out if skies will be clear for your viewing, join us on FOX 17 News, or visit the weather page at http://www.fox17online.com/weather
