A trio of somewhat smaller meteor showers look for your attention this month. Maybe not the grand show of the Leonid showers in November, but nonetheless interesting to see.
The Southern Delta Aquarid meteor shower usually takes top honors in July, but this year the Moon tends to get in the way with its brightness. The radiant lies near the constellation Aquarius. The showers begin on July 12, with the peak around July 29t. These meteors have good speed and usually appear faint, with a count of 10 to 20 per hour.
Another small shower, the Alpha Capricornids, usually puts on a good show because they occasionally produce fireballs. They start around July 3 to August 15, with a peak around the 27 to the 30.
As the name suggests, the radiant lies in the constellation Capricornus, which is located very low in the southern skies. So any meteors seen from our area here in the north tend to have long trails. These traits of fireballs and long trails make these showers certainly worth watching.
The last of our three showers is actually a very large shower in August, but activity starts in July. The Perseids slowly begin in mid-July and build up to the August peak. The best time to view them is in the early morning when Perseus, the Hero, appears higher in the sky.
Constellation
of the Month
No one ever seems to like scorpions. No one even seems to say anything nice about scorpions. Well, when it comes to the constellations, Scorpius is one of my favorites. Not just because that is my sign, but also because it is one of the few constellations that even looks like its namesake. It is one of the larger designs in the sky. Scorpius used to be even bigger, until the Romans decided there should be 12 constellations in the zodiac, instead of 11, so they made the two claws into the arms of the balance in Libra.
The bright star, Antares, is the scorpion’s heart. Antares is one of the reddest stars in the sky. Its name means that it is the “rival of Mars.” As most know, Mars is red as well, and when it goes along the ecliptic just north of Antares, they look as if they are competing with each other.
Remember how Orion was killed by the scorpion. Now the Orion in the sky keeps as far as he can from the scorpion in the sky. As soon as Orion sees Scorpius rising in the east, he sets in the west.
Just as Orion is the brilliant central constellation of the winter evening sky, so Scorpius is the brilliant central constellation of the summer evening sky. Take your binoculars to see this scorpion in the sky; there is an awful lot to see here.
On July 17, just after 8pm, the Moon will occult (cover up) Antares, and then reappear just after 9pm. When it disappears, the sky will still be light out, so it might be hard to see, but by the time it reappears from behind the Moon it will be during twilight so it should be a little easier to witness.
It is quite interesting to watch a star just get lost behind the Moon and then miraculously come back to us. If you have a pair of binoculars or a telescope you won’t want to miss this rare occultation event. Clear skies.
July Sky Watch
July 6 New Moon
July 7 Mercury passes 1.6 degrees south of Venus
July 8 Moon is farthest from Earth(apogee-252,502 miles)
Moon passes 5 degrees north of Mercury
Moon passes 3 degrees south of Venus
July 13 Moon passes 0.8 degrees south of Jupiter
July 14 Moon at First Quarter
July 17 Moon occultation of Antares
July 21 Full Moon, the July Moon is called the Thunder Moon or Hay Moon
Moon is closest to Earth (perigee-221, 928 miles)
Perigee and Full Moon are only 8.8 hours apart, high tides are expected.
July 22 Venus passes 1.2 degrees north of regulus
July 27 Moon passes 4 degrees north of Mars
Moon at last quarter
David Baumgartner is in local real estate and is an avid amateur astronomer. His Sky Watch column appears monthly.
