AstroPlanet

The Full Moon for August occurs on August 5^th.  It is known as the Full Sturgeon Moon.  It is also known as the Grain or Green Corn Moon. On August 5^th, there will be a Penumbral Lunar Eclipse visible from Africa, South America, Europe and the Middle East.

The New Moon occurs on Thursday, August 20^th.  This will make the weekend of August 22-23 as the best weekend for dark sky viewing this month.

The planet Mercury is visible in the evening this month and reaches its

Greatest Eastern Elongation on August 24^th.  Mercury’s Greatest Eastern

Elongation provides the best evening view for its current orbit. At this

point, Mercury is 27°21’55” from the Sun, making it visible for almost

2 hours after sunset.

Mercury begins August in the constellation Leo (The Lion) until August 20^th when it moves into the constellation Virgo (The Maiden).

On August 1^st Mercury is a mere 0°40’ from the star Regulus.

On August 16th Mercury passes within 3° from the planet Saturn.

On August 21^st, the waxing crescent Moon passes less than 5°30 on
Mercury.

Venus is the Morning Star for August. Venus begins this month in the constellation Gemini (The Twins) and on August 24^th, Venus moves into the constellation Cancer (The Crab).

On August 2nd, Venus is within 2°30’ of the open cluster, M35.

Mars is observable during the morning hours of August.  At the beginning of the month Mars rises around 2:00 am (PDT) and by the end of the month Mars rises around 1:20 am (PDT).  Mars begins this month in the constellation Taurus (The Bull) and on August 25 it moves into the constellation Gemini (The Twins) where it will finish out the month.

On August 15^th and 16^th Mars is located about 7° from the waning crescent Moon.

On August 29th, Mars will pass within 0°50’ of the open cluster, M35.

This month is the best time to observe Jupiter this year since Jupiter reaches opposition on August 14^th.  Jupiter is visible all night, all month in the constellation Carpicornus (The Sea Goat), where it can be found until January 2010.  Currently, Jupiter is moving in retrograde motion.

On August 6th, Jupiter sets within 4°45’ of the Full Moon.

Saturn is visible in the early evening hours during August.  At the beginning of the Month Saturn sets around 9:50 pm (PDT) and by the end of August Saturn sets around 8:00 pm (PDT). Saturn is located in the constellation Leo (The Lion) until September.  Saturn disappears into the glare of the Sunset at the end of August.

On August 16th, Mercury passes within 3° from the planet Saturn.

Uranus is located in the constellation Pisces (The Fish) until October.  At the beginning of August Uranus rises around 10:05 pm (PDT) and by the end of the month Uranus rises around 8:00 pm (PDT).

Moving in retrograde this month, the planet Neptune is visible, all night, since it will reach Opposition on August 17^th.  This month will be the best time this year to observe Neptune, which is located in the constellation Capricornus (The Sea Goat) until the year 2010.

Pluto can be observed in the morning hours of August in the constellation Sagittarius (The Archer), where it is located unto the year 2023.  The planet Pluto is currently in retrograde motion.

August 2nd finds Pluto about 9° from the waning, gibbous Moon.

Tags: First Quarter Moon, Full Sturgeon Moon, Jupiter, Jupiter Opposion, Last Quarter Moon, Mars, Mercury, Mercury Greatest Western Elongation, Neptune, Neptune Opposition, New Moon, Pluto, Saturn, Uranus, Venus

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 1st, 2009 at 12:00 am and is filed under What's Up this Month. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.