What’s Up in the August Sky?
August’s Evening Planets:
Find bright Jupiter in Aquarius the Water-bearer and Saturn in Capricornus the Sea-goat all night. Find bright Venus between Leo the Lion and Virgo the Maiden for about one hour after sunset. Mercury could be seen for about one hour after sunset in the last week of August. Mars up until about 10 PM in the first week of the month. Uranus will be in Cetus the Sea-monster around midnight and rising earlier every day. Neptune is in Aquarius the Water bearer all night. Dwarf Pluto will be in Sagittarius the Archer all night.
August’s Evening Stars:
Spot the Summer Triangle of Vega in Lyra the Harp, Deneb in Cygnus the Swan, and Altair in Aquila the Eagle all night. See Antares in Scorpius the Scorpion, Capella in Auriga the Charioteer, and Arcturus in Boötes the Herdsman. Also, find the stars of constellations Ophiuchus, Libra, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Sagittarius, Capricornus, Aquarius, Hercules, Aquarius, Andromeda, Draco, Pegasus, and Ursa Major and Ursa Minor (the Big and Little Dippers).
August’s Morning Planets:
Find bright Jupiter in Aquarius the Water-bearer until sunrise. Saturn will be in Capricornus the Sea-goat until around 4 AM. Uranus will be in Cetus the Sea-monster and Neptune is in Aquarius the Water bearer until sunrise. Dwarf Pluto will be in Sagittarius the Archer until around 4 AM and setting earlier every night.
August’s Morning Stars:
Look for Capella in Auriga the Charioteer, Vega in Lyra the Harp, Deneb in Cygnus the Swan, Aldebaran in Taurus the Bull, Castor and Pollux in in Gemini the Twins, Beetlejuice and Rigel in Orion the Hunter, as well as the stars of constellations Lyra, Aquarius, Cetus, Orion, Pisces, Aries, Draco, Pegasus, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, Andromeda, Perseus, and Ursa Major and Ursa Minor (the Big and Little Dippers).
August Skylights:
Aug 2: Moon at apogee (251,300 miles away)
Aug 2: Saturn at opposition, brightest in 2021
Aug 8: New Moon at 9:50 AM
Aug 13: Perseid meteor shower peaks, pre-dawn
Aug 15: First Quarter Moon at 11:20 AM
Aug 17: Moon at perigee (229,400 miles away)
Aug 17: Jupiter, Saturn, Moon, and Antares line up, looking south
Aug 20: Jupiter at opposition, brightest in 2021
Aug 22: Full Moon at 8:00 AM
Aug 29: Moon at apogee (251,100 miles away)
Aug 30: Third Quarter Moon at 3:15 AM
Times given in EDT.
Resources
Download Ken Graun’s August 2021 sky chart for reference and observing ideas. Another equally helpful resource is Skymaps’ monthly evening sky chart, available for different hemispheres. Download The Evening Sky Map for August.
