Adrian Dening's Stars Over Somerset

Wednesday, 20 July 2022 17:00

Monday 25th to Sunday 31st July 2022

If it's still hot and you're having trouble sleeping, there are a couple of great opportunities to see Venus alongside a waning Crescent Moon in the early morning, about 4am local time. On Tuesday 26th the Crescent Moon will be 5%-lit and the following morning, it will only be 2%.

You will find the pair close to the horizon, slightly north of east. At the same time, the constellation of Taurus with the Pleiades open cluster of stars M45 will be a bit higher up and due east. Mars will be slightly to the south of east. Keep turning in that direction and you will also be able to see Jupiter in the south east and Saturn just past south.

All these objects are visible with the naked eye, but binoculars or a small telescope will reveal the major stars of the Pleiades in much more detail. If you would like a bit of a challenge, have a go at trying to spot Uranus, which is located to the left of Mars. The planet currently has a magnitude of around +6 so should be easy to see with binoculars. A small telescope will start to show a turquoise disk.

Uranus is the third-largest planet in our Solar System and is mainly composed of Hydrogen and Helium, with a few other smelly ingredients like Ammonia and Methane! It has a system of rings around it, although not as majestic as Saturn's and 27 known moons. One unusual fact is that Uranus spins on its side, so the north and south poles are actually left and right!

If you are using binoculars or a telescope, please remember to pack them away before the Sun rises so that there is no danger of accidentally catching a glimpse of it in the eyepiece.

Screenshots courtesy of Stellarium