{"id":62163,"date":"2024-07-31T09:06:16","date_gmt":"2024-07-31T09:06:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/7ad3a307-4e40-4c49-a90f-c239b27d55d5"},"modified":"2024-07-31T09:39:46","modified_gmt":"2024-07-31T09:39:46","slug":"saturn-disappears-the-summer-triangle-and-one-of-the-years-best-meteor-showers-whats-in-the-night-sky-this-month","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/saturn-disappears-the-summer-triangle-and-one-of-the-years-best-meteor-showers-whats-in-the-night-sky-this-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Saturn ‘disappears’, the Summer Triangle and one of the year’s best meteor showers. What’s in the night sky this month"},"content":{"rendered":"

What can you see in the night sky tonight? Find out what’s on view in our monthly stargazing guide. <\/p>

By Pete Lawrence\n <\/p>

Published: Wednesday, 31 July 2024 at 09:06 AM<\/p>

\n\n

In this guide we’ll reveal what you can see in the night sky tonight, and throughout the month.<\/p>

Those of us who enjoy stargazing and observing the night sky can’t always plan when and where we’re going to get the chance to gaze upwards.<\/p>

Busy schedules, light pollution<\/a>, the weather: sometimes finding even just 30 minutes to stand and stare up at a clear, dark night sky and take in the planets, stars and constellations can be a feat in itself.<\/p>

So when you do find the time, you’ll need to know what’s visible in the night sky tonight, and the best things to look out for when stargazing.<\/p>

Complete newcomer? Read our guides to the best telescopes for beginners<\/a> and astronomy for beginners<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>

Credit: M Gucci \/ Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Here’s our stargazing guide to what you can see in the night sky tonight.<\/p>
Our guide is centred around what’s visible from the UK, but all northern hemisphere observers should be able to use it, with the odd adjustment to stated times.<\/p>
In our guide, we use Universal Time (UT) and British Summer Time (BST). UT is the standard time used by astronomers around the world. BST is one hour ahead of UT<\/p>
We also use RA (Right ascension)and dec. (declination).<\/p>
These coordinates are the night sky\u2019s equivalent of longitude and latitude, describing where an object is on the celestial \u2018globe\u2019.<\/p>
For help with these, read our guide to celestial coordinates<\/a>.<\/p>
**For more advice, read our guide on** **how to stargaze<\/a> or sign up to receive the BBC Sky at Night Magazine e-newsletter<\/a> for weekly tips delivered directly to your email inbox.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>**
***If you’re south of the equator, find out what you can see in the*** ***Southern Hemisphere night sky tonight<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>***
$\"Milky$
Milky Way over Namthing Pokhri Lake Basudeb Chakrabarti, West Bengal, India, 13 March 2022 Equipment: Nikon D5200 DSLR, Tokina 11\u201316mm lens, tripod<\/figcaption><\/figure>
**What’s in the night sky tonight?<\/strong><\/h2>**
**August astronomy highlights<\/strong><\/h3>**
**1 August:<\/strong> Waning crescent Moon lies near M35 after rising (am)<\/li>**
**5 August:<\/strong> Jupiter, Mars and Aldebaran form a right-angled triangle (am)<\/li>**
**9 August:<\/strong> Double shadow transit of Jupiter (am)<\/li>**
**12 August:<\/strong> Peak of the Perseid meteor shower<\/li>**
**21 August:<\/strong> Saturn occulted by the Moon (am)<\/li><\/ul>****Planets<\/strong><\/h3>** $\"Find$
Find Mars, Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus, the Bull, in August 2024. Click chart to expand. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
The planets return with a vengeance in August. The inferior planets aren\u2019t best placed, but Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are well presented.<\/p>
Mars, Jupiter and Uranus are within Taurus<\/a>, the Bull, the beautiful stars and clusters of this Zodiacal constellation providing a great backdrop for them.\u00a0<\/p>
Saturn improves in bounds this month. Best seen at the end of August, it reaches its highest position in UK skies, 30\u00b0 above the southern horizon, from 10 August.<\/p>
Excitingly, Saturn is occulted by a 97%-lit **waning gibbous Moon<\/strong> on the morning of 21 August<\/a> as the sky brightens.<\/p>**
**Disappearance should be easy to see around 04:28 BST, but reappearance at 05:13 BST will be harder as the sky brightens.<\/p>**
**Given clear skies, both events are perfectly observable though. Times are for the UK\u2019s centre and will vary by up to several minutes depending on where you live.<\/p>**
**$\"Chart$** Saturn will disappear behind a 97%-lit waning gibbous Moon on the morning of 21 August. Click chart to expand. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
A small telescope trained on Jupiter shows the planet\u2019s disc and its four bright **Galilean moons<\/a><\/strong>; Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.<\/p>**
**The moons frequently pass, or transit, in front of Jupiter accompanied by their shadows.<\/p>**
**On 9 August from 03:45-04:26 BST (02:45-03:26 UT) the shadows of Io and Ganymede both appear on Jupiter\u2019s disc at the same time, an event known as a double shadow transit.<\/p>**
**Perseids<\/strong><\/h3>** $\"Chart$
Chart showing the location of the Perseid meteor shower 2024. Click chart to expand. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
August is famous for playing host to the peak of the **Perseid meteor shower<\/a><\/strong>, this year predicted for 15:00 BST on 12 August.<\/p>**
**The quality of the Perseids, and of any meteor shower<\/a>, is determined by the presence of the Moon; a bright Moon drowns out all but the most spectacular meteor trails.<\/p>**
**In 2023, conditions were perfect as the new Moon occurred just after the peak.<\/p>**
**Peak conditions are excellent in 2024 too, the Moon at first quarter on 12 August and setting just before 22:30 BST \u2013 before the sky gets properly dark enough to watch for meteors.<\/p>**
**Consequently, a watch on the nights of 11\/12 and 12\/13 should deliver some excellent views, weather permitting. <\/p>**
**Stars and constellations<\/strong><\/h3>** $\"The$
The stars of the Summer Triangle. Click chart to expand. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
The darker nights of August allow the stars of summer<\/a> to shine through.<\/p>
The **Summer Triangle<\/a><\/strong> remains prominent marked by Deneb<\/a> in the northeast, Vega<\/a> in the northwest and Altair<\/a> to the south.<\/p>**
**There are plenty of deep-sky objects in the Summer Triangle<\/a> worth seeking out with a telescope.<\/p>**
Vega is the brightest star in Lyra, the Lyre, a small compact constellation which contains the beautiful **Ring Nebula<\/a><\/strong>, M57.<\/p>**
Another Lyra showpiece is the multiple star Epsilon<\/strong> **(<\/strong>\u03b5) Lyrae<\/strong><\/a> just to the northeast of Vega.<\/p>**
**Given good eyesight, this appears as two stars to the naked eye.<\/p>**
**A telescope using high magnification shows each component to be double again, an attribute which has led to Epsilon Lyrae being known as the Double-Double.\u00a0<\/p>**
**$\"Epsilon$** Epsilon Lyrae is known as the ‘Double Double’. Credit: Pete Lawrence<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Another spectacular double is the warm yellow and azure blue pair of **Albireo<\/a><\/strong> (Beta (\u03b2) Cygni) at the foot of the Northern Cross asterism.<\/p>**
**A telescope shows these colours well.<\/p>**
**A line of small constellations flows southeast from Albireo; Vulpecula, the Fox, Sagitta<\/a>, the Arrow, Delphinus<\/a>, the Dolphin and Equuleus, the Foal.<\/p>**
$\"Collinder$
Collinder 399, the Coathanger Asterism. Credit: John Chumack<\/figcaption><\/figure>
Vulpecula plays host to the binocular bright **Dumbbell Nebula<\/a><\/strong>, M27, as well as Collinder 399 or Brocchi\u2019s Cluster.<\/p>**
Visible to the naked eye, binoculars or a small telescope reveal it has the shape of a coathanger, hence it’s known as the **Coathanger Cluster<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>**
**Despite this name, it\u2019s not a true cluster at all, rather a chance, line-of-sight alignment of stars, in other words an asterism.\u00a0<\/p>**
**Night sky in August 2024, night-by-night<\/strong><\/h2>**
Monday 29 July<\/strong><\/h3>
As the 29%-lit waning crescent Moon rises, it will sit 1.5\u00b0 east-southeast of the Pleiades.<\/p>
Tuesday 30 July<\/strong><\/h3>
This morning, the waning crescent Moon begins its passage through some wonderful celestial real estate, including Mars, Jupiter and the stars and clusters of Taurus.\u00a0<\/p>
Alpha Capricornid meteor shower peaks (ZHR 5).Delta Aquariid meteor shower peaks (ZHR 16).<\/p>
Wednesday 31 July<\/strong><\/h3>
This morning\u2019s 19%-lit waning crescent Moon sits 5.3\u00b0 from Jupiter. Mars, Jupiter and Aldebaran form a tight triangle in Taurus.<\/p>
Thursday 1 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Just after it rises this morning, the 11% waning crescent Moon sits 4.2\u00b0 north-northwest of open cluster Messier 35 in Gemini.<\/p>
Friday 2 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Io and Ganymede\u2019s shadows form a double shadow transit on a low-altitude Jupiter between 00:23 and 01:46 BST (23:23 on 1 August to 00:46 UT).<\/p>
Sunday 4 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Dione\u2019s shadow is in transit across Saturn\u2019s disc between 00:27 and 03:25 BST (23:27 UTon 3 August to 02:25 UT).<\/p>
Monday 5 August<\/strong><\/h3>
A 1%-lit waxing crescent Moon sits 1.8\u00b0 northwest of Venus, low in the evening twilight, over the west-northwest horizon shortly after sunset. Regulus appears 1.2\u00b0 southwest of Venus and Mercury 6.2\u00b0 south of Venus.<\/p>
Tuesday 6 August<\/strong><\/h3>
From around 02:00 BST (01:00 UT) mag. \u20132.0 Jupiter, +0.9 Mars and +0.8 Aldebaran form a right-angled triangle, with Mars at the right angle.<\/p>
Friday 9 August<\/strong><\/h3>
A double shadow transit involving the shadows of Io and Ganymede can be seen between 03:45 and 04:26 BST (02:45\u201303:26 UT).<\/p>
Saturday 10 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Saturn is now able to reach its highest position due south, under truly dark skies.<\/p>
Sunday 11 August<\/strong><\/h3>
This month\u2019s Moonwatch target is the crater Albategnius, best seen tonight, tomorrow night and during the morning of 26 August.<\/p>
Monday 12 August<\/strong><\/h3>
The lunar clair-obscur effect known as the Stars of Aristillus is visible on today\u2019s daylight Moon at 15:00 BST (14:00 UT).<\/p>
The Perseid meteor shower peak is predicted for 15:00 BST (14:00 UT) making the nights of 11\/12 and 12\/13 August optimum viewing periods.<\/p>
Wednesday 14 August<\/strong><\/h3>
This and tomorrow morning, Mars and Jupiter are in conjunction. This morning, Mars lies 25 arcminutes northwest of Jupiter. Tomorrow the separation is just 22 arcminutes.<\/p>
Thursday 15 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Dione\u2019s shadow is in transit across Saturn\u2019s disc starting at 23:14 BST (22:14 UT) on 14 August until 02:11 BST (01:11 UT) on 15 August.<\/p>
Saturday 17 August<\/strong><\/h3>
A view of Saturn at 05:00 BST (04:00 UT), just before sunrise, will show Titan virtually touching the planet\u2019s southern pole.<\/p>
Wednesday 21 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Saturn is occulted by a 97%-lit waning gibbous Moon, incidentally at perigee, this morning (see page 46). Disappearance is at 04:28 BST (03:28 UT), reappearance at 05:13 BST (04:13 UT) as the dawn sky brightens.<\/p>
Neptune lies 6 arcminutes from the Moon\u2019s northern edge at 22:30 BST (21:30 UT).<\/p>
Monday 26 August<\/strong><\/h3>
This morning\u2019s last quarter Moon slides in front of the southern part of the Pleiades open cluster during the early hours. Uranus lies 4.6\u00b0 south-southwest of the Moon.<\/p>
Tuesday 27 August<\/strong><\/h3>
A 42%-lit waning crescent Moon sits 6.8\u00b0 northwest of Jupiter this morning.\u00a0<\/p>
Magnitude +0.8 Mars lies 1.1\u00b0 north of M1, the Crab Nebula.<\/p>
Wednesday 28 August<\/strong><\/h3>
This morning the 32%-lit waning crescent Moon sits 4.7\u00b0 north of Mars.<\/p>
Saturday 31 August<\/strong><\/h3>
Jupiter occults a magnitude +11.3 star between 00:00 and 01:34 BST (23:00 UT on 30 August until 00:34 UT).<\/p>
This morning a 7%-lit waning crescent Moon sits less than 3\u00b0 north of M44, the Beehive Cluster. \u00a0<\/p>
***Share your observations and images with us, or send us your astronomy questions to contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n***
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