Star Watch for Summer 2022
The WCSU Planetarium and Observatory facility remains closed due to the coronavirus and its variants and sub-variants. Let’s hope to see an end to them in the coming months. Meanwhile, you can still observe the heavens! Please use the Sky Calendar (below) to help you find interesting celestial objects and events during the summer!
SKY CALENDAR
*, !, !! – interesting to very interesting celestial event
E – calendar or geometry- related event (such as an equinox)
| Date | Note | Description |
| July 1 | *! | During pre-dawn twilight, look ENE to see the Pleiades star cluster in the constellation Taurus. Below it is brilliant Venus, with the star cluster (also in Taurus) called the Hyades like a large letter V tipped over toward Venus. The conspicuous orange star Aldebaran (alpha Tauri) is the brightest star in Taurus. The planet Mercury, somewhat lower than Venus and to its left, can also be spotted near the horizon. |
| 4 | E | Earth reaches aphelion at 94,509,598 miles from the Sun. |
| 6 | First Quarter Moon | |
| 13 | ! | The FULL Buck MOON is also at perigee (i.e., another “Supermoon”) 221,993 miles from Earth’s center. |
| 16 | The Moon passes near the planet Saturn. Look SSW after midnight. | |
| 18 | The Moon passes near the planet Jupiter. | |
| 20 | Last Quarter Moon | |
| 21 | Moon passes near the planet Mars. | |
| 26 | Moon passes near Venus. The Moon is also at apogee, 252,447 miles from Earth’s center. | |
| 28 | New Moon | |
| 29 | The Moon reaches apogee at 252,637 miles. It also passes the planet Mercury. | |
| Aug. 1-3 | *! | Before dawn, look for brilliant Venus low in the eastern sky, bright Jupiter high in the southern sky, and conspicuous Mars (around magnitude zero). Binocular users can glimpse the planet Uranus (yellow-green) in the same view as orange Mars. |
| 5 | First Quarter Moon | |
| 10 | The nearly full Moon reaches perigee, at 223,587 miles from Earth’s center. | |
| 11 | FULL Sturgeon MOON. The Moon also passes near the planet Saturn. | |
| 14 | *! | Saturn reaches opposition to the Sun, rising in the east around sunset and visible all night. |
| 19 | * | The Last Quarter Moon passes near the planet Mars. |
| 22 | Moon reaches apogee at 251,915 miles from Earth’s center. | |
| 27 | New Moon | |
| Sept.3 | First Quarter Moon | |
| 7 | The Moon reaches perigee at 226,485 miles from Earth’s center. | |
| 10 | FULL Harvest MOON | |
| 17 | Last Quarter Moon | |
| 19 | The Moon reaches apogee at 251,379 miles from Earth’s center. | |
| 25 | New Moon | |
| 26 | ! ! | The planet Jupiter reaches opposition, rising in the east around sunset and visible all night. |
Star Watch is supported by the Department of Physics, Astronomy and Meteorology. Thank you for connecting. Keep checking this web site for updates on the facility.