The sky in July and August.

Publication: Natural History

Publication Date: 01-JUL-03

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COPYRIGHT 2003 Natural History Magazine, Inc.

Mercury makes an evening appearance, albeit a poor one, during late July and early August. The little planet shines above the west-northwestern horizon about forty-five minutes after sunset, then follows the Sun behind the horizon fifteen minutes later. Otherwise it's not visible. Two conjunctions are of note: On the evening of July 25 Jupiter slips less than one-half a degree to the south of Mercury, but the king of the gods is four times brighter than the gods' messenger. On the evening of the 30th Mercury passes a fraction of a degree north of the blue star Regulus; in this instance, the gods' messenger is four times brighter than the little king (which is what "regulus" means). Binoculars, a "severe-clear" sky, and an open view to...

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