Wondering what’s going to be up at the sky for the approaching month? The following is a list of astronomical events for August 2017. All dates and times were given in Gulf Standard (UAE Local) Time.

August 3, 2017: Close Approach of the Moon and Saturn

Figure 1. Illustration of the Close Approach of the Waxing Gibbous Moon and Saturn with Antares on August 3, 2017 (not to scale) (Image Credit: Stellarium)

The Moon and planet Saturn would appear close to each other (around 3°25’ angular separation) at the sky when viewed from Earth. These celestial objects will be observed at the southeastern portion of the sky in the constellation of Ophiuchus (the serpent bearer) as the dusk fades at around 7:20PM, reach its highest point over the southern horizon at 8:55PM until it sets at the southwestern horizon at around 1:40AM of the next day. The moon will be at the Waxing Gibbous phase (about 86% illuminated). Saturn would look like a “yellowish/reddish unblinking star”. Antares, the reddish star in Scorpius can be seen near these celestial objects.

August 7, 2017: Full Moon, Partial Lunar Eclipse

Figure 2. The Full Moon and its Surface Features taken from Al Sadeem Observatory last July 7, 2017

Situated on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun, the moon will be fully illuminated (100%) on this day. For selenophiles (individuals who love the moon), this is the best time to observe all the surface features of this celestial object, including the craters and maria. It will start appearing at around 7PM, and can be seen throughout the night until sunrise positioned in the constellation of Capricornus (the horned goat). Because of its full illumination during this phase, it won’t be a good time for deep-sky observation with the entire moonlight glaring out most of the faint celestial objects.

Figure 3. The Partial Lunar Eclipse taken from Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines on April 25, 2013 (Image Source: earthsky.org)

On the same night, the Full Moon will be partially covered by the Earth’s shadow during the Partial Lunar Eclipse. The duration of the partial lunar eclipse proper will last for about 2 ½ hours, from 9PM to 11:30PM. The Earth’s inner shadow, known as the umbra, will cover up about 25% of the lunar disk on its southern periphery at 10:22PM 39° above the southeastern horizon. This celestial event is easily and safely seen with the naked eye. It’s much more promising to view it using binoculars or telescope.

August 12 – 13, 2017: Perseid Meteor Shower

On the late evening hours of August 12 until dawn of August 13, 2017, the peak of an active meteor shower known as the Perseids will take place. It is projected to bring up to 50-100 meteors per hour under completely dark, cloudless skies. These meteors will seem to radiate from the constellation Perseids (the warrior) at the sky’s northeastern portion but can be observed anywhere of the sky from 10PM all the way through dawn. The space debris from comet Swift-Tuttle entering Earth are the ones responsible for this meteor shower. Unfortunately, we will only see less number of meteors than the projected measure due to the presence of the waning gibbous moon nearby the radiant.  A must have in observing this astronomical phenomenon is patience; lots of them and comfort.

Figure 4. The position of Perseids radiant (Image Credit: Stellarium, theskyscrapers.org)

Figure 5. A Captured Perseid Meteor taken from Al Sadeem Observatory last 2016 (Image Credit: Praboodhan Pordar Photography)

August 19, 2017: Venus-Waning Crescent Moon Conjunction

The Moon and planet Venus will be in conjunction; would appear relatively close to each other (about 2°14’ angular separation), sharing almost the same right ascension when viewed from Earth. These celestial objects will be observed at the eastern sky coordinate in the constellation of Gemini as it rises from 3:30AM until sunrise. Due to its close angular proximity, both celestial objects can be observed within a wide-field, less magnified telescope view (preferably with 40mm eyepiece or longer). The moon will be at the Waning Crescent phase (about 10% illuminated).

Figure 6. Illustrated view of the Venus-Waning Crescent Moon Conjunction as seen from a low-power eyepiece with its nearby stars on August 19, 2017 (not to scale) (Image Credit: Stellarium)

August 21, 2017: New Moon

On this day, the moon will not be visible as it will be situated at the same side of the Earth as the Sun, in the constellation of Leo. With no moonlight glaring much of the night sky, this is the best time to observe the deep sky objects throughout the night. It is predicted that the lunar phase will occur on this day. However, the month transition from Dhū al-Qa‘dah to Dhu l-Hidjdja shall take place three days later (August 24) in accordance to the Hijri Calendar.

August 25, 2017: Close Approach of the Moon and Jupiter

The Moon and planet Jupiter would appear close to each other (around 3°17′ angular separation) at the sky when viewed from Earth. These celestial objects will be seen relatively high in the southeastern portion of the sky in the constellation of Virgo just after sunset at around 7:15PM until it sets at around 8:30PM of the same day.  The moon will be on its Waxing Crescent Phase. Spica, the alpha star of Virgo, will also be seen near these celestial objects. Jupiter would look like a “bright white star” that doesn’t twinkle.

Figure 7. Illustration of the Close Approach of the Waxing Crescent Moon and Jupiter with Spica on August 25, 2017 (not to scale) (Image Credit: Stellarium)

August 30, 2017: Close Approach of the Moon and Saturn

The Moon and planet Saturn would appear close to each other (around 3°13’ angular separation) at the sky when viewed from Earth. These celestial objects will be observed at its highest point over the southern sky in the constellation of Ophiuchus as the dusk fades at around 7:30PM until it sets at the southwestern horizon at around midnight of the next day.  The moon will be at the Waxing Gibbous phase (about 62% illuminated). Saturn would look like a “yellowish/reddish unblinking star”. Antares, the reddish star in Scorpius can be seen near these celestial objects.

Figure 8. Illustration of the Close Approach of the Waxing Gibbous Moon and Saturn with Antares on August 30, 2017 (not to scale) (Image Credit: Stellarium)

References

Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events 2017 . (n.d.). Retrieved from Sea and Sky: www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-2017.html

Calendar of Astronomical Events. (n.d.). Retrieved from In-The-Sky.org: http://in-the-sky.org/newscal.php?year=2017&month=7&maxdiff=5

Islamic calendar 2017. (n.d.). Retrieved from Calendar.sk: https://calendar.zoznam.sk/islamic_calendar-en.php

Partial Lunar Eclipse on 7/8 August 2017 – Where and When to See. (n.d.). Retrieved from timeanddate.com: https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/lunar/2017-august-7