Sky & Telescope - July 2022 - 46

JULY 2022 OBSERVING
Sun, Moon & Planets by Gary Seronik
To find out what's
visible in the sky from
your location, go to
skyandtelescope.org.
Lovely Lunar Link-ups
Bright stars and brighter planets greet the Moon.
FRIDAY, JULY 1
Last month's parade of planets has lost
some of its luster since hitting its peak
on June 24th, but there's still an impressive
show going on at dawn. Saturn and
Mercury still bracket the solar system
array, but the span between those two
outliers has increased from its minimum
of 91° on June 4th to 118° this
morning. Most of that spread is due to
Mercury's eastward drift as it descends
sunward while its current apparition
draws to a close. Offsetting the planet's
lower altitude is its increasing brightness
- Mercury shines at magnitude
-0.8 on this date. Even so, the innermost
planet will be lost from naked-eye
view in just one week. When it exits the
dawn, the planetary parade essentially
comes to an end.
The first of July is also notable
because Venus is close to Aldebaran.
The gleaming Morning Star has been
creeping up to Taurus's leading light for
days, and this morning it sits just a bit
more than 4° from the star. In effect,
Venus has become a temporary, honorary
member of the Hyades, but you'll
need your binoculars to really appreciate
this scene since most of the cluster
stars struggle to stand out against
twilight's glow.
SUNDAY, JULY 10
The Moon and Antares meet on a
monthly basis, and these encounters
are getting a little bit closer each time
- as they will for a couple of years. Of
course, given the Moon's rapid pace as
it travels the ecliptic (it moves its own
These scenes are drawn for near the
middle of North America (latitude 40° north,
longitude 90° west).
46
JULY 2022 * SKY & TELESCOPE
diameter in about an hour), the appearance
of any given encounter depends
a lot on when it's dark and whether
the Moon's up where you are. This
evening, look to the south-southeast
as twilight fades to catch the waxing
gibbous Moon (about 90% illuminated)
sitting just a bit more than 2° above left
of Antares. This is the closest link-up
between the Moon and a bright star
this month. You certainly don't need
binoculars to enjoy this event, but I
always find optical aid helps enhance
the orangey hue of Antares.
TUESDAY, JULY 19
As the Moon tracks its way eastward
along the ecliptic, it visits each of the
planets currently strung out across the
sky - some more closely than others.
Late in the evening on the 15th, it rose
Dawn, July 1
30 minutes before sunrise
roughly 6° apart from Saturn. And a
few nights later, just after the calendar
ticks over from the 18th to the 19th,
the waning gibbous Moon ascends due
east just 3° below mighty Jupiter. Here
again, binoculars add something a little
extra to the conjunction - and that
" extra " is a Jovian moon or two.
The satellite you're mostly likely to
catch is 6.2-magnitude Callisto, which
is off to the planet's right. Jupiter's other
three bright moons are likely too close
to the planet's disk to be seen easily at
binocular magnifications, but you can
always try. The key to success is finding
some way to hold your binoculars steady.
You can prop them up on a fence or railing,
or even mount them on a camera
tripod with a special adapter. As always,
you can identify which moon is which
by turning to the diagram presented on
Dawn, July 14 - 16
45 minutes before sunrise
Saturn
Moon
July 16
10°
Pleiades
TAURUS
Moon
July 15
Venus
CAPRICORNUS
Aldebaran
Mercury
Moon
July 14
Looking East
Looking Southwest
http://www.skyandtelescope.org
Sky & Telescope - July 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky & Telescope - July 2022
