Monday 18th to Sunday 24th August 2024
I mentioned spotting Mercury in the dawn sky last week. On Tuesday 19th, the planet reaches its greatest western elongation, which in practice means that it will be in the best position for viewing, appearing above the eastern horizon about an hour before sunrise. Mercury will have a magnitude of around +0.1
If you look towards the east around
When you've finished with them, look further to the right to catch the whole of Orion, with the bright stars Betelgeuse and Rigel. The constellation will look like it is on its side at this time of year and be quite close to the horizon. During the winter months, it appears higher in the night sky and is then better-placed for detailed viewing.
You should be able to notice that Betelgeuse has a reddish tint, while Rigel is more blueish. This is because Betelgeuse is a big old red giant star, but Rigel is much younger and hotter.
If you repeat the exercise at 5am a couple of days later, on Thursday 21st, the three planets will appear near enough in the same position, but the Moon will now be found just above Mercury and our natural satellite will be a very hard-to-spot 4%-lit crescent as it heads towards a New Moon phase on 23rd.
www.starsoversomerset.com
Screenshots courtesy of Stellarium
Copyright Adrian Dening and Radio Ninesprings 2025
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