We may not be able to see the solar eclipse on July 2 in this part of the world, but heads up, sky watchers—there’s a lunar eclipse coming our way this month.

It’s going to be on the night of July 16, when the Moon will be partially covered by the Earth’s inner shadow known as the umbra, which will cover up 60% of the lunar surface.

To those who want to witness this astronomical phenomenon, Al Sadeem Astronomy is hosting an open house in Al Wathba, where everyone is free to drop by. The duration of the partial lunar eclipse will last for three hours, from 12 midnight to three in the morning the following day.

According to EarthSky, this will be the last time that the moon sweeps through the Earth’s dark umbral shadow. The next the total lunar eclipse is on May 26, 2021.

Since it’s a full moon, it will also be the best time to observe all of the Moon’s surface features, including the craters and maria. Consequently, it’s definitely also a no-go for those who would like to check out on several deep-sky objects such as the Eagle Nebula, Great Pegasus Cluster, and the Milky Way galaxy.

Another celestial treat to watch out for this July is the Southern Delta Aquariid Meteor Shower. It will peak in the early morning hours of July 29, showcasing an average of 20 meteors per hour. These meteors appear to radiate from the Aquarius constellation.

The space debris from the comets Marsden and Krachtscratching the Earth’s atmosphere are the ones responsible for the bright streaks the Southern Delta Aquarids will bring to Earth’s spectators.

To know where and when to look at the night sky this July here’s an easy rundown on the schedule of your favorite celestial object’s appearances:

July 9: Saturn in Opposition. The ring planet will appear at its brightest as seen from the sky since Saturn will be situated directly opposite of the Sun. Saturn can be seen as early as 7:45 P.M. in the constellation of Sagittarius (The Archer).

July 13: Moon-Jupiter Conjunction.

The Moon and planet Jupiter will be seen close to each other at a 2.2° angular separation in the night sky. Planet Jupiter would look like a “bright white star” just below the bright Waxing Gibbous Moon.

July 16, 2019: Moon-Saturn Close Approach

At a 5.8 ° angular separation, the Moon and Saturn will be seen at the southeastern portion of the sky in the constellation of Sagittarius (The Archer). On this day, the Moon will be in its full phase.

References

Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events 2019. (n.d.). Retrieved from Sea and Sky: www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-2019.html

Calendar of Astronomical Events. (n.d.). Retrieved from In-The-Sky.org: http://in-the-sky.org/newscal.php?year=2019&month=7&maxdiff=5

Islamic calendar 2019. (n.d.). Retrieved from Calendar.sk: https://calendar.zoznam.sk/islamic_calendar-en.php

Sunrise and sunset times in Abu Dhabi, July 2019. (n.d.). Retrieved from timeanddate.com: https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/united-arab-emirates/abu-dhabi?month=7&year=2019