Some highlights for the night sky in August 2006
Wednesday 2 August 2006
- Before sunrise, look for Mercury and Venus in ENE separated by 5.5 degrees
- After sunset, look for first quarter Moon near Alpha Libra and Jupiter
Friday 4 August 2006
- After sunset, look for waxing gibbous Moon near Antares in Scorpius
- Before sunrise, look for Mercury and Venus low on horizon
Monday 7 August 2006
- Mercury at greatest elongation
- Before sunrise, look for Venus and Mercury only 2.8 degrees separation, about 6.5 degrees lower right of Pollux in Gemini
Wednesday 9 August 2006
- Before sunrise, Venus and Mercury are only 2.3 degrees apart
- Full Moon
Saturday 12 August 2006
- Before sunrise, look for Venus and Mercury, about 2.3 degrees apart
- Look for Castor and Pollux in Gemini, above the inner planets
- Peak of Perseid meteor shower
Sunday 13 August 2006
- Before sunrise, look for Mercury about 2.6 degrees from Venus
- See if you see Sirius rise, about 29 degrees from Procyon
Wednesday 16 August 2006
- Before sunrise, the Pleiades is occulted by the waning Moon.
- Mercury and Venus are less than 4 degrees apart.
Sunday 20 August 2005
- Before sunrise, look for waning crescent Moon near Castor and Pollux.
- Look for Saturn near Mercury and Venus low on horizon before sunrise.
- Happy 60th Birthday Richard Geller.
Wednesday 23 August 2006
- New Moon at 3:10 PM EDT.
- Before sunrise look for Mercury, Saturn and Venus all within 10 degrees of one another, near horizon.
Friday 25 August 2006
- After sunset, look carefully for a young crescent Moon and Mars in the West
- Before sunrise, look for Venus and Saturn just 1.7 degrees apart.
Sunday 27 August 2006
- Before sunrise, look for Saturn less than a degree to the upper right of Venus.
- Mars WILL NOT be closest to the Earth this day; this is an urban legend. See my Mars Hoax webpage from last year to learn more, or look at this webpage for an updated view.
Monday 28 August 2006
- After sunset look for Jupiter near Alpha Libra.
- Look for crescent Moon after sunset between Jupiter and Spica.
Thursday 31 August 2006
- After sunset look for Moon beneath Antares.
- First quarter Moon.
- Before sunrise, look for Saturn near Venus.
Good skywatching resources
John Avellone's provided web sites