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The Night Sky contains a number of fascinating objects in the summer months with people for access to a telescope, with the Summer Milky Way being easily visible. However, even if you don't have a telescope, some of the events listed here, can be seen using a pair of binoculars, or by the naked eye also.
July 1: Close approach of Moon and Mars
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
Credit: The Sky Live
This event will be visible towards the East just before sunrise all around the world. Mars will appear as a reddish dot just below the Moon. The two bodies will be close enough to be seen thorugh binoculars at the same time.
July 3: Moon between Jupiter and the Pleiades
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
Credit: The Sky Live
The Pleiades might be hard to catch for people living in Bortle class 7 or above cities, as the Pleiades might not be visible, but Jupiter can definitely be seen brightly shining close to the Moon. Check the Bortle class of your area here- www.lightpollutionmap.info
If you manage to catch it, you will again, have to wake up quite early as it can only be seen before sunrise. In this event, the cresent Moon will be located just between Jupiter and the Pleiades, making for an ideal experience.
July 5: Earth at Aphelion
Event Not Visible
Credit: Britannica
The aphelion marks the point in its orbit when Earth is at its furthest distance from the Sun. On this day, the Earth will be 3% further away from the Sun than its average distance.
The Sun is further away than usual, but since the distance is just 3% more, the affects are not felt on the Earth and the distance is considered negligible and doesn't have any effects.
July 6: New Moon
Event Not Visible
Due to its orbit, the Moon will pass close to the Sun in the sky and be lost in its glare for a few days, before reappearing in the evening sky just after sunset. During the new moon, the Moon will also be at its perihelion, which means it will be at the closest point on its current orbit to the Sun.
July 8: Conjunction of Moon and Mercury
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
Credit: The Sky Live
Just after sunset, Mercury and the Sun can be seen together in the extreme west direction. They will be too far away to fit inside the field of view of a telescope but can easily be seen with binoculars.
July 8-10: Earthshine
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
Credit: Travel+Leisure
This is one of the most beautiful Moon related phenomenon, with the unlit side of the Moon being slightly illuminated by sunlight reflected off the Earth. This event is easily visible to the naked eye but is even better with binoculars or a small telescope.
This event shall be visible for a few hours after sunset. Never point your optical instruments directly at the Sun or close to it!
July 15: Close Approach Of Mars And Uranus
Level 3 Event: Visible Through A Small Telescope
Credit: The Sky Live
On the early morning of 15 July, Mars and Uranus will pass extremely close to each other, easily fitting together in the field of view of a telescope. However, this event shall not be visible to the naked eye due to Uranus having an apparent magnitude of 5.7.
July 17: Mercury At Highest Altitude In The Evening
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
On this day, Mercury will appear at its highest altitude in the evening sky. Just after sunset, it will have an elevation of about 22º when seen from my home in Bengaluru.
Generally, observing Mercury is hard because of its proximity to the Sun, at it is hidden in the Sun's glare for most of the time. However, such days present good opportunities to view the closest planet to the Sun easily. It can be seen easily with the naked eye and with binoculars.
July 21: Full Thunder Moon
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
On 21 July, the Moon will reach its full phase and can be beautiful to watch, even with the naked eye. However, with even a small telescope, the details on the full moon are really stunning. So, if you have access to a telescope and, more importantly, clear skies, don't hesitate to take some pictures, and send them to me at biz.technocompanion@gmail.com
23 July: Pluto At Opposition
Level 4 Event: Visible Through A 4" Telescope
On this day, the former-planet, Pluto, is at opposition. This means that the Earth comes exactly between Pluto and the Sun. However, due to its distance, this has no effect on Pluto. However, this is the best time to view Pluto as it will be at its brightest, and almost 100% illuminated.
During its opposition, Pluto will rise around the time of sunset and set at the time of sunrise. So, get out your telescopes, and do some dwarf planet spotting!
24 July: Lunar Occultation Of Saturn
Level 2 Event: Visible Through Binoculars
Credit: The Sky Live
Arguably, this is the most interesting and beautiful event of this month. In this event, the Moon will pass in front of Saturn, hiding it for around 1 hour, after which it reappears. In Bengaluru, this event begins at around 1:00 AM and ends at around 2:00 AM.
This event, however, is visible only in South India, North-East India, Central China, and other parts of South Asia. To check the timings at your location, you can visit In-The-Sky
30 July: Close Approach Of Moon And Mars
Level 1 Event: Naked Eye Visibility
The first event of July repeats itself, to end the month, with the Moon and Mars coming together again, in the wee hours of the morning.
That is all of the main astronomical events of this month. Stay tuned for news of other future events!
Clear skies,
Aarav Iyer