[-] Evening sky looking north-west as seen from Adelaide at 7:00 pm on Saturday July 10. Click to embiggen.

On the evening of Saturday July 10 Venus and the bright star Regulus (alpha Leonis) will be close, this is the start of a series of beautiful encounters in the evening sky of bright planets. Pop out and have a look.

Venus and Regulus close - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/1267506202841046094/comments/default

[-] Venus, through cloud, once again sent by reader Tony Travaglia. Click to embiggen.

Another Nice View of Venus - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/1679380069553273618/comments/default

[-] Venus glows above the sunset in this mobile phone image taken on a bicycle ride on the week end. As usual I had to jam myself up against a pillar to stop the phone wobbling too uch. Click to embiggen.

Mobile Phone Venus Yet Again (part 2) - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/5792561955156793567/comments/default

[-] Tony Travaglia sends in this stunning image of the International Space Station crossing the sky as the moon rises. Click to embiggen, it's worth it.

Now THAT'S an ISS photograph - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/4168901255264618650/comments/default

[-] The New Moon is Monday July 12. This week sees 4 of the 5 classic planets visible in the evening sky. Venus is close to Regulus on the 10 and 11th. Venus, Regulus and the thin crescent Moon are close on the 14th, with Mercury below. Venus the crescent moon and Mars make a nice lineup on the 15th with Saturn close by. Jupiter is prominent in the morning sky.

Evening sky looking north-west as seen from Adelaide at 7:00 pm on Saturday July 10. Click to embiggen.

Jupiter rises before midnight, but is still clearly visible in the northern sky as the brightest object in the early morning. Jupiter is now high enough for telescopic observation to be rewarding. Jupiter looks a little different now that one of its bands has disappeared. Jupiter and Uranus are close together and can be seen near each other in a pair of binoculars.






Evening sky looking North-west showing Mercury,Venus, Mars, Saturn and Regulus at 5:50 pm local time on Thursday July 8. Click to embiggen.

Mercury can be seen by the keen-eyed low above the western horizon half an hour after sunset at the beginning of the week, but becomes easier to see during the week. On the 13th the thin crescent Moon is near Mercury low in the west in the twilight.

Bright white Venus is readily visible above the western horizon from half an hour after Sunset, (even before) until past the end of twilight (about an hour and a half after sunset). Venus is in Leo the lion, close to Regulus, the brightest star in Leo, Mars and Saturn. On the July 10th Venus and Regulus are closest at 1 degree (about a fingerwidth) apart. On Wednesday July 14 the crescent Moon, Venus and Regulus are close. On the next night, July 15, Venus, the crescent Moon and Mars form a shallow triangle.

In the evening Mars can be seen low in the north-western sky. Mars is to the right of Regulus, midway between Regulus and Saturn at the beginning of the week. Mars comes closer to Saturn during the week. Mars is now only slightly brighter than Regulus, but is distinguishable by its reddish colouring.

Saturn is easily visible in the western evening sky as the bright yellow object between the bright stars Regulus and Spica, just up from Mars. Telescopic observation of the ringed world is becoming more difficult as Saturn sets earlier. Saturn is high enough in the sky for the best telescopic views at around 7 pm. Saturn's' rings are opening, and look quite beautiful, even in a small telescope. On the 12th of July, Saturns' Moon Titan cruises just above the planets North pole.

If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.

Printable PDF maps of the Eastern sky at 10 pm ADST, Western sky at 10 pm ADST. For further details and more information on what's up in the sky, see Southern Skywatch. Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.

The Sky This Week - Thursday July 8 to Thursday July 15 - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/8084434616919119639/comments/default

[-] Venus and the Moon ride above the horizon in this image from Sherman Williams (c) copyright Sherman Williams. Click to the images to embiggen.

Remember when Venus was near the Moon back on June 16 (and June 15)?

Reader Sherman Williams sent along these fantastic images of the Moon and Venus as seen that night from Nova Scotia in the northern hemisphere. His photos show how Venus and the crescent moon appeared in his sky, 45 deg N LAT, 64.23 deg W LONGITUDE at about 10 p.m. (UT -3h) Monday evening, June 14.

They are fantastic (and yes, upside down from how we see them).

Sorry to take so long to post them, but eclipse planning and exam marking diverted my attention from them. Enjoy!

More Views of Venus and the Moon. - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/103419638239704838/comments/default

[-] Carnival of Space #160 is now up at Beyond Apollo. There's pink nebula, X-ray poems, panspermia and an extrasolar weather report. Buzz on over and have a read!

Carnival of Space #160 is here. - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/2466604918569541140/comments/default

[-] The evening sky facing north-west in Melbourne on July 14 at 7:00 pm AEST showing Venus and the crescent Moon, with Regulus, Mars and Saturn close by. (similar views will be seen from other cities at the equivalent local time eg 7:00 pm ACST Adelaide.

The July edition of Southern Skywatch is now up with lots of planetary action, with Venus close to the Moon, Mars close to the Moon, Venus, Mars and Saturn forming interesting patters and Venus near Regulus. Jupiter is within binocular range of Uranus. Mercury returns to the evening sky.

Southern Skywatch July 2010 edition is now up! - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/2028972346898174303/comments/default

[-] Morning sky looking east as seen from Adelaide at 4:30 am on Sunday July 4. Click to embiggen.

Jupiter is close to the waning Moon in the morning sky on Sunday, July 4.

With Jupiter a handspan above the 57% illuminated Moon, you can use the Moon to locate Jupiter after the Sunrise. Jupiter and the Moon are also in a relatively dark part of the sky, so it will be easier to pick up after sunrise.

If you start observing before sunrise the location of Jupiter above the Moon is obvious and you can follow the Moon and Jupiter as the sky brightens.

If you are looking after sunrise (but before Moonset, around 11:30 am in Australia), first locate the Moon (fairly easy, as it is bright and in the north-west). Jupiter will be a handspan (the distance covered by your fingers when you hand is help up at arms length in at "stop" gesture, about 6 degrees) above the Moon, you may bneed to look carefully for a while before Jupiter "pops" out at you. Sometimes locating Jupiter in binoculars will help with locating it with the unaided eye.

Make sure the Sun is hidden behind something solid like a building or a wall when you are looking for Jupiter, not trees or your hand. Exposing your eyes directly to the glare of the Sun can be very dangerous and you could potentially lose your sight. This is doubly true if you are using binoculars.

Jupiter in Daylight - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/7037886750426979017/comments/default

[-] You may remember how the British Chiropractic Association sued Simon Singh because he had the audacity to sepak the truth about Chiropractic. Now a medical testing firm, Doctors data, is suing Dr. Steve Barrett of Quackwatch, for criticising it. Well warranted and scientifically supported criticism. You can read more detail at Respectful Insolence. As with the Simon Singh case, pass the news on so we can raise awarness of this latest round of anti-science bullying, and you can contribute to Dr. Barrett's legal defense fund by donating to Quackwatch here.

Anti-Science Bullies at it Again - http://astroblogger.blogspot.com/feeds/3336561984619664227/comments/default