Sky-Viewing Events for August 2021

The green lines indicate the path the planet has taken in the month of July while the blue lines indicate the path that the planet is going to trace in the month of August. This image only shows the inner solar system because the outer planets move very little in the span of a month.

This short article will enable you to know many night-sky events that will take place during the month of August. Keep in mind that this information is intended for those who live in the northern hemisphere, and the details of certain astronomical events may vary if you live south of the equator. The zodiac constellation associated with this month in western astrology is Leo. However, since western astrology has not accounted for the position of the stars drifting over large time spans, the constellation that the Sun rests in for this month is actually Cancer.

Jupiter and Saturn will be visible all month as a close pair of light bulbs that rise in the southeast and Move to the southwest before being washed out by the rising sun. These two planets will also be at their closest distances to the Earth on the 2nd for Saturn and the 19th for Jupiter. Additionally, the Moon will make a close approach to these planets from the 20th to the 23rd. Venus will also be visible in the direction of the setting sun in the early weeks of the month.

Aug 2nd: On August 2nd, Saturn will be at its closest distance to Earth which will put it in its prime for viewing.

Aug 8th: August 8th will be when the Moon is in its new Moon phase. Since this puts it in the direction of the sun, it will not be visible to anybody on Earth.

Aug 12, 13: From August 12th through August 13th the sky will dazzle viewers with the peak of the Perseids meteor shower. This shower will display roughly 100 meteors per hour radiating from the constellation, Perseus. The cosmic light show is produced when the Earth passes through the orbit of another astronomical body named Comet Swift-Tuttle. The debris left in the orbit of this comet pelt Earth at 37 miles per second which produces the showers we see in August.

15th: The fifteenth will show the waxing first-quarter Moon.

Aug19th Following in the footsteps of Saturn, Jupiter will also be in opposition on August 19th.

Aug 22nd: The full Moon displayed on August 22nd will be unique because it will also be a blue Moon. This occurs whenever there are 4 Moons in a season rather than the usual three and it is an event that, on average, occurs every 2.7 years. One may also see this Moon referred to in the media as the “Sturgeon Moon” which got the name from indigenous American tribes who coined the term based on the fish that was plentiful around this time of year.

30th: Finally, the Moon will be in its waning last-quarter phase on the 30th.