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The Hill
01-07-2025
- Science
- The Hill
Buck Moon, ‘Swift Planet' and more: How to enjoy July's night sky events
(NEXSTAR) – The first full month of summer arrives bearing several celestial treats for skywatchers. July will offer a meteor shower, a glimpse of the Buck Moon and a view of the Scorpius constellation, among other sights. On July 4, there will be an uncommonly good opportunity to get a glimpse of Mercury, the smallest, speediest planet in our solar system. Named after the Roman god known for his winged feet and swift travel, Mercury is the planet located nearest to the sun, which it flies around every 88 days, according to NASA. At 12 a.m. CDT on July 4, Mercury will reach its greatest elongation, or the farthest distance from the sun, making it the best time to see it. To get a glimpse of the 'Swift Planet,' EarthSky suggests waiting for the sun to set before looking west for the planet during twilight time. Nearly a week after Fourth of July fireworks illuminate the sky, the so-called Buck Moon will rise on July 10. The name dates back to the Maine Farmers' Almanac, which assigned 'Indian' names to full moons, starting in the 1930s, according to NASA. The names stuck and are still used today. The Almanac reportedly claimed that members of the northeastern U.S. Algonquin tribes called the July full moon the Buck Moon for the male deer whose antlers start to emerge, encased in velvety fur. The tribes also called it the Thunder Moon because of the regular early summer storms in the region. For the astrology geeks out there, one of the twelve zodiacal constellations is a familiar sight in the summer night sky – Scorpius, located in the galactic center of the Milky Way. Depending on the amount of light pollution you're dealing with, Scorpius has a number of highlights to check off, such as Antares, or the 'heart of the scorpion.' The supergiant star has a reddish hue and can be observed with the naked eye. Starting July 18, the Southern Delta Aquariid meteors will become active and will potentially be visible until late August. The Southern Delta Aquariids will reach their peak between July 29 and July 30, according to NASA. The meteors are faint, so they won't be visible if the moon is out. Observers in the Southern Hemisphere and southern latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere will have the best odds of a good show. Here's what you can do to increase your odds of seeing them, according to NASA: If the weather doesn't cooperate where you live, there will be plenty to enjoy in August when we get a glimpse of Venus and Jupiter side-by-side, the Sturgeon Moon and the Perseid meteor shower.
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
July will bring a sighting of the 'Swift Planet', the Buck Moon and a meteor shower. Watch for these dates
July will be packed with cosmic activity. Mercury, the fastest-moving planet in our solar system, will make a rare and optimal appearance, providing a chance to spot it near the western horizon. Halfway through the month, the Buck Moon will illuminate the night sky. Toward the end of July, the Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower will peak. Here's what else to know. Mercury, the closest planet to the sun, always appears near it in the sky and often fades into the sun's glare. On July 4, however, Mercury will reach its greatest elongation — the farthest apparent distance from the sun — offering sky gazers a view of the "Swift Planet." To spot Mercury, look toward the western horizon shortly after sunset, said EarthSky. It will be positioned low in the sky, while Mars, shining as brightly as a first-magnitude star, will be higher up in the evening twilight. Why is it the "Swift Planet"? According to the National Air and Space Museum, Mercury is known as the "Swift Planet" because of how fast it travels through space, 29 miles per second. It's the fastest planet in the Solar System. July's full moon, known as the Buck Moon, rises on July 10. According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, the moon will reach peak illumination at 3:37 p.m. CT. The July full moon's name is inspired by the seasonal cycle of male deer, or bucks, whose antlers reach their full growth during this time. The almanac attributes full moon names to a variety of origins, including Native American, Colonial American, and European traditions. Historically, these names referred to the entire lunar month rather than just the full moon itself. Several other names for July's moon also reference animals, including Feather Moulting Moon (Cree) and Salmon Moon, a Tlingit term indicating when fish returned to the area and were ready to be harvested, wrote the almanac. The Southern Delta Aquariids meteor shower begins in mid-July and lasts until late August. According to NASA, the faint meteors can be hard to spot, especially if the moon is shining. The best chance to see them is during their peak on July 29–30, when meteor activity is highest. Under dark, moon-free skies, you may observe 7–8 meteors per hour traveling at 26 miles per second. In 2025, a waxing crescent moon will set early, making the morning hours ideal for viewing, said the American Meteor Society. Similar to May's Eta Aquariids, the Southern Delta Aquariids are more prominent in the Southern Hemisphere, though they can still be observed from locations such as the southern United States, said EarthSky. Diana Leyva covers trending news and service journalism for the Tennessean. Contact her at Dleyva@ or follow her on X at @_leyvadiana This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: When is the next full moon? July brings the Buck Moon, meteor shower
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Two stunning conjunctions will light up the night sky in June. Here's how to see them.
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Two rare twilight pairings will grace the June 2025 sky as the moon first passes close to elusive Mercury and then gets stunningly close to Mars. Mercury is typically difficult to see and the conjunction between Mars and the moon will be particularly close, so both will be special sights for skywatchers. The moon and Mercury meet-up comes as the "Swift Planet," which orbits the sun every 88 days, emerges from our star's glare into the post-sunset sky between June 21 and 30. According to NASA, Mercury will be visible just above the western horizon for 30 to 45 minutes after sunset. On Thursday (June 26), a very slim crescent moon will appear between Mercury and the two bright stars in the constellation Gemini — Pollux and Castor — causing a brief line of lights in the post-sunset night sky. On Friday (June 27), the crescent moon will be higher in the sky, just above Mercury. Precisely how low Mercury is, and how long it's observable during this period, depends on your location, so check or Stellarium. That also applies to seeing what is arguably the skywatching highlight of the month on Sunday (June 29), when amateur astronomers will get a stunning view of a 24%-illuminated crescent moon directly beneath Mars in the constellation Leo, with just 0.2 degrees (12 arcminutes) separating them. The two worlds will appear so close that a fingertip held at arm's length will cover them. RELATED STORIES —The 10 best stargazing events of 2025 —Full moons of 2025: When is the next full moon? —Have all 8 planets ever aligned? The sight will be high in the western sky and easily visible without any equipment, but the two celestial bodies will be so close that they'll fit into the same field of view of a telescope. Although it's rare to see the moon and Mercury together in the night sky, and the closeness of the moon and Mars is also unusual, conjunctions between our natural satellite and planets are not uncommon. Planets orbit the sun on more or less the same plane, called the ecliptic. It's the same path the sun takes through the daytime sky as seen from Earth. The moon's orbit of Earth isn't quite the same, but its rather wobbly path differs from the ecliptic by only five degrees. Twice a month, the moon crosses the ecliptic (hence the name, because that sometimes causes solar and lunar eclipses), so it can come particularly close to a planet as seen from our terrestrial viewpoint. The next significant close planetary conjunction will be the meeting of Venus and Jupiter in the pre-dawn hours of Aug. 12, when the two brightest planets will form a dazzlingly close pair. Originally published on Live Science.
