{"id":47747,"date":"2023-07-23T07:00:49","date_gmt":"2023-07-23T07:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/?p=120602"},"modified":"2023-07-23T08:32:36","modified_gmt":"2023-07-23T08:32:36","slug":"star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Star Diary: 24 to 30 July, 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"

Keep an eye out for the three innermost planets Mercury, Venus and Mars just after sunset in this week\u2019s stargazing guide. <\/p>

By Ezzy Pearson\n \t\t<\/p>

2023-07-23 07:00:49<\/p>

\n\n

What\u2019s in the night sky in the week of 17 to 23 July, 2023 in our weekly stargazing guide. Keep an eye out for the three innermost planets just after sunset in this week\u2019s stargazing guide.<\/p>\n\nChris Bramley\u00a0<\/strong>Hello and welcome to Star Diary, the podcast from the makers of BBC Sky at Night Magazine. You can subscribe to the print edition of the magazine by visiting\u00a0<a href=\""http:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/"\">www.skyatnightmagazine.com<\/a>\u00a0or digital edition by visiting on iTunes or Google Play.<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Greetings listeners, and welcome to Star Diary. A weekly guide to the best things to see in the northern hemispheres night sky, as we are based here in the uk all times are in BST. In this episode, we\u2019ll be covering the coming week from 24th to 30th of July. I\u2019m feature\u2019s editor Ezzy Pearson and I\u2019m joined this week by reviews editor Paul Money. Hello Paul.<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> Hello, Ezzy, another week to look forward to.<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Yes. So what do we have to look forward to in the night skies in the coming week?<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> Well, you know how we do like challenges, you know, and we do like to set challenges. We start off in the very bright evening, <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/space-science\/an-astronomers-guide-to-twilight\/"\">twilight<\/a>. Now this is a challenge. Now, over the last few months we\u2019ve been watching <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/astrophotography\/planets\/venus\/"\">Venus<\/a> as it gradually, it came out and became really well seen for many hours. And then it\u2019s surprising how quick it dropped back down into the deep twilight during June and into this month, July. So we\u2019re getting towards the last week now in June, July as we\u2019re covering it.<\/p>\nAnd Venus is really difficult, even though it\u2019s bright. It is deep down in the twilight. But if you look at the right time, you should still spot it just before it actually sets. Now we\u2019re looking. On July 24th because we\u2019ve also got <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/space-science\/guide-to-the-planets-mercury\/"\">Mercury<\/a> and <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/astrophotography\/planets\/mars\/"\">Mars<\/a> nearby as well. And Mars will be harder, Mercury a little bit easier. Venus is the brightest of the lot. So you need to see Venus to be able to guide you to the other planets. So they\u2019re all in the bright twilight. You wanna be looking roughly 20 minutes after sunset. Now, we always say this, you\u2019ve gotta make sure the sun is set and you\u2019ve gotta bear in mind the further north you are then that sunset occurs later. So although we say a time sort of thing, you\u2019ve gotta bear in mind the further north you are the sun will still be up or too close to the horizon. So bear that in mind. But for mid UK around about 9:30 in the evening, Venus will be just hugging the horizon.<\/p>\nYou do need a long uncluttered horizon to see this. So buildings, trees, even a hedge might get in the way. Not that I\u2019m saying you should chop down the hedge, you understand. We need all the greenery we can get. But if you do spot Venus, and as long as the Sun is set, you can sweep for it with <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/best-binoculars-for-astronomy\/"\">binoculars<\/a>. But as I say, you\u2019ve got to make sure the Sun has set.<\/p>\nNow if you spot Venus, try for Mercury to its upper right and it is slightly, well, it is fainter than Venus. Venus is the dazzling one. But we\u2019ve got atmospheric extinction, at this point because we\u2019re looking really low. So we\u2019re looking through a thick part of the atmosphere. You\u2019ve gotta bear that in mind, if you spot Mercury and it seems reasonably bright in binoculars, then waft over to the left hand side and just see if you can spot Mars. It too is really hard now because it\u2019s in the bright twilight.\u00a0 But it is a challenge and after this, sadly Venus is dropping so quickly, it\u2019s gone.<\/p>\nSo you are talking probably about the last chance to see Venus on the 24th. 25th an absolute push. But the beauty about that is you can see it closer to sunset, but I would always advise really letting the Sun set before you actually try.<\/p>\nSo there we are sort of thing. We start off with a bit of a challenge. Whether you\u2019ll see them is anybody\u2019s guess sort of in the sky, varies so much for everybody. The haze conditions each, it changes, doesn\u2019t it, from day to day, even by the minute sometimes sort of thing. So you know.<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> But it is worth remembering that you can still see things in the twilight sky when it\u2019s still quite bright cuz the sun has just gone down. So it is definitely worth giving it a go to see if you can find those things.<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> Especially when you consider that you have been able\u2026 I\u2019ve been spotting Venus in the daytime sky. I mean, again-<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Exactly.<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> -again, the sky conditions have to be perfect. So the Sun\u2019s up, but it has, the conditions have to be right to be fair. However, easier to see. So this, still in the evening sky and it\u2019s a lot easier. Well, but the almost half phase moon, which will lie to the right of Spica in <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/skills\/bowl-virgo-asterism\/"\">Virgo<\/a>. Now you want to\u2026 you can view around about 10 o\u2019clock for this, because they won\u2019t be set in for a while yet. The next evening the Moon will be up first quarter phase, and this time it\u2019ll be to the left of the star. So the star will be visible because you know the twilight, oh, the light summer nights will be bright. You should still be able to see Spica and yeah, the moon will guide you.<\/p>\nNow moving on. We get to July 26th, so we go a couple of days ahead. We\u2019re still with the Moon, we find around about 10 o\u2019clock. It lies below <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/zubenelgenubi\/"\">Alpha Libra, Zubenelgenubi<\/a>. A big mouthful into it, but it\u2019s a nice wide double star, split easily, uh, using, say 10 x 50 binoculars. I think even you could try 7 x 50 and just see whether\u2026 cause that\u2019s down to your eyesight then as to whether you can split them. This is July 26th. And say you don\u2019t have to have it right after sunset. You can leave this till about 10 o\u2019clock in the evening and grab that. And it\u2019s just nice as the Moon is a guide, isn\u2019t it? We often use the Moon as a guide to find interesting ones. And if you\u2019ve not seen a double star, then this is a particularly good one, nice and wide as well.<\/p>\nBut back to those bright evening twilight. Two days later, July 28th, Venus is gone. So I\u2019m afraid tough. You haven\u2019t got a guide now, which is a shame because Venus has been really bright . But although it\u2019s lost, Mercury\u2019s still above the horizon. In fact, technically, although Venus will be below the horizon, Mercury lies almost directly above Venus. So if you are able to pick Venus up in the daytime sky before the sunset, and again, very, very careful when you do this, you might spot Mercury directly above it. You wanna be looking roughly towards the west northwest, about 9:30 in the evening. But it is very bright sky, so used binocular to try to spot Mercury because the star <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/regulus\/"\">Regulus<\/a> is right next to it. So it\u2019ll almost look like it\u2019s got a fainter companion next to the planet. So if you do get that, see if you can spot Regulus as well. And of course, we\u2019ve got Mars off to the left of it as well. But in bright twilight, we\u2019re gonna be struggling, I think, with Mars.<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Mm-hmm. That is one of the problems with Mercury because it is so close to the Sun. It\u2019s always going to be in a relatively bright sky, I think, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> It is. It\u2019s a pain, isn\u2019t it? I mean, you know, I mean, fancy doing that to us sort of thing. You could\u2026 actually, it depends on where you are on Earth. I mean, when I was in the Algarve many years ago, we had a particularly favourable apparition of quite a few of the planets. We actually had me, Mercury, Venus, Mars, <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/astrophotography\/planets\/saturn\/"\">Saturn<\/a> and <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/astrophotography\/planets\/jupiter\/"\">Jupiter<\/a>. But the point was, it was a brilliant alignment. It was one of the rare alignments where we had so many planets. In fact, I think it doesn\u2019t happen for a very, very long time. I might not even be around for the next time but I remember being in the Algarve, now from the UK, the ecliptic was very shallow and Mercury, I could just see it, but it\u2019s in very bright twilight. But from the Algarve, we\u2019re about 15 degrees further south. It was surprising the tilt of the ecliptic was steeper and Mercury, it was still bright twilight, but it was a deeper twilight.<\/p>\nSee, Mercury\u2019s stood out a treat. You could easily see it. So it does depend on where you are. But here in the UK we have to suffer.<\/p>\nIn the summer, Mercury apparitions are poor. They\u2019re always poor. The actual ecliptic is always shallow to the horizon, so it doesn\u2019t get very far. In fact, later on in the month when it\u2019s at \u2026 later on in actual fact in August when it\u2019s at greatest elongation, you can\u2019t see it. It\u2019s dropped below the horizon, so you can\u2019t see that. However, still on 28th we\u2019re back with the Moon because the Moon now is just to the left of <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/antares\/"\">Antares in Scorpius<\/a>. So this will be\u2026 should be fairly obvious. You should see Antares with the naked eye and you should see the moon just to the left of\u2026 it\u2019s quite close. It\u2019s about one and a half, just under two degrees from the actual star. So I always like that sort of thing because it\u2019s a nice orangey star as well. So it shows up quite well in binoculars. It\u2019ll be a good view in binoculars.<\/p>\nNow we are and should mention that. We\u2019ve had <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/advice\/skills\/noctilucent-clouds-what-they-are-and-how-to-see-them\/"\">noctilucent clouds<\/a>, but we\u2019ve had a pretty poor showing, so far at the time that we\u2019re recording this. So we\u2019re just hopeful that there will be a few more displays. But at the time of the recording, we\u2019ve had some pretty poor, hardly any noctilucent clouds. And July is when we think the main season will finish. So when you get\u2026 the nights are drawing in, you see? So it\u2019s getting darker. You need the light summer nights to be able to see them.<\/p>\nSo it\u2019s worth keeping an eye out just in case. I have seen reports and we have seen brief appearances in early August, so there\u2019s still a bit of hope, but uh, you know, it\u2019s one of those, you get years like this, you know, sometimes they\u2019re really good. I\u2019m just hoping that between now and when this comes out we\u2019ll get a brilliant display. You can always hope<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> So much of astronomy is, as you know, sort of set in stone. You can predict it 200 years in advance that it\u2019s nice to somehow sometimes have something that\u2019s a bit more unpredictable. It makes it that much more special when you actually manage to see them.<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> I think that\u2019s an Aurora. They\u2019re the two really unpredictable ones as far as the\u2026 well, something that can be seen by the public. Yes. Now, although I have seen quite a few pictures where people have got sort like quite a cloudy horizon, a few gaps in the cloud and they think the gaps are the actual noctilucent in cloud and in actual fact, it isn\u2019t. It\u2019s just simply a gap in ordinary cloud, which is dark and it\u2019s showing the bright sky behind but that\u2019s one of those things,<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Which is still very a beautiful thing to see. I know astronomers tend to curse the clouds more than anything else, but. They can be pretty sometimes.<\/p>\nPaul<\/strong> Oh, yes. I don\u2019t disagree with that. It\u2019s just the misidentification that the bright background sky is actually the noctilucent and cloud when in actual fact it\u2019s just the sky. But\u2026 They need\u2026 if it\u2019s a deep blue, they\u2019re not really the noctilucent clouds. But if a silvery blue shimmering, then it can be quite pretty.<\/p>\nFinally for this week sort of thing, we mustn\u2019t forget the morning sky. I know we have to get up in the mornings but we have got all four giant planets on display and now Saturn is rising around midnight, as it\u2019s only a month away from opposition. So we\u2019ve actually got Saturn in Aquarius. We\u2019ve got <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/space-science\/a-guide-to-the-planets-neptune\/"\">Neptune<\/a> a bit further on the ecliptic. Then Jupiter, which of course is bright. Saturn and Jupiter I saw the other morning, I was quite, you know, I couldn\u2019t sleep.<\/p>\nJust happened to look out the back window, which faces east and there was Saturn with the Moon below it and the Jupiter. Jupiter\u2019s quite plain, but if you\u2019ve got binoculars, search out Neptune and we\u2019ve got <a href=\""https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/astrophotography\/planets\/uranus\/"\">Uranus<\/a> as well. So, well worth having a look in the morning sky for these planets just to get your planetary fix and they are getting well placed till view. That\u2019s the beauty about this at the moment and with the skies getting darker, they are much better for the fainter planets, Neptune and Uranus as well.<\/p>\nSo there we are. Quite a few things for this week. A lot in the evening sky, admittedly, but, uh, we like that, don\u2019t we?<\/p>\nEzzy<\/strong> Yes, there is certainly a lot to be getting on with this week.<\/p>\nSo to summarise that again, on the 24th of July, Mercury, Venus and Mars will all be visible just after sunset. Do be sure to catch that because it\u2019s probably one of your last chances to see Venus before it disappears below the horizon, and the half Moon will also be next to the Star Spica. Then on the 26th, the double star Zubenelgenubi will be a good shout to have a look at.<\/p>\nThen on the 28th, Mercury lies next to the Star Regulus with Mars to the left, and also you\u2019ll be able to see the Moon next to Antares in Scorpius. And also throughout the week do be sure to keep an eye out for all four of the giant planets in the morning sky. Saturn is rising around midnight at the moment as it\u2019s only one month away from opposition.<\/p>\nAnd keep an eye out for NLCs. It\u2019s not been the best year this year, but perhaps you will get lucky and be able to see them. So thank you very much Paul, for taking the time to take us through all of that. If you at home would like to catch next week\u2019s episode, do be sure to subscribe and we will see you then.<\/p>\nGoodbye. If you want to find out even more spectacular sites that will be gracing the night sky this month, be sure to pick up a copy of BBC Sky at Night Magazine, where we have a 16 page pullout sky guide with a full overview of everything worth looking up for throughout the whole month. Whether you like to look at the moon, the planets, or the deep sky, whether you use binoculars, telescopes, or neither.<\/p>\nOur Sky Guide has got you covered with detailed star charts to help you track your way across the night sky. From all of us here at BBC Sky Night Magazine, goodbye.<\/p>\nChris<\/strong> Thank you for listening to this episode of the Star Diary podcast from the makers of BBC Sky Night Magazine. For more of our podcasts, visit our website at <a href=\""http:\/\/skyatnightmagazine.com"\">skyatnightmagazine.com<\/a> or head to iTunes or Spotify.<\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Keep an eye out for the three innermost planets Mercury, Venus and Mars just after sunset in this week\u2019s stargazing guide. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":47748,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"13"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023.jpg",1500,1000,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023.jpg",1500,1000,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/77\/2023\/07\/star-diary-24-to-30-july-2023.jpg",1500,1000,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Keep an eye out for the three innermost planets Mercury, Venus and Mars just after sunset in this week\u2019s stargazing guide.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/47747"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47748"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47747"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47747"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}