If you have never submitted a request to be sent a text or an e-mail informing you of an upcoming opportunity to watch the International Space Station pass across our field of view, may I suggest that you do? It is amazing to stand out in the yard 225 miles below this football-field-size space science station and watch it as long as the sun reflects off its surface. When the scheduled time arrives, if the sky is clear, you will see that moving point of light scurrying across from point A to point B. The website is <https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/> There were several passes during the past couple of weeks.
An hour after the sun sets, look for golden Arcturus gleaming high overhead. In the NE, look for Vega, (VEE-ga) the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, the Harp. Compare the colors of these two beauties. As the Earth rotates on its axis throughout the night, other stars of the summertime appear in the eastern sky. By midnight, all three stars of the Summer Triangle asterism, which is the three brightest stars from three different constellations, Lyra, the harp, Cygnus the swan, and Altair in the eagle will be visible if light pollution or clouds are not an issue. Lyra resembles a slightly bent trapezoid with a handle or a tail. The brightest star in it is Vega.
To locate the others, imagine a large triangle, with Vega at the apex, Deneb to the left vertex, and Altair to the right. Deneb is the brightest star in the constellation called the Northern Cross, or the Swan, Cygnus. This arrangement of stars does look like a cross. With an active imagination it can also appear to be a swan with its graceful neck outstretched towards the center of the triangle, and its strong wings spreading out on either side of the body. Deneb marks the tail. The swan’s head is marked by an exquisite pairing of stars named Albireo, a match of a 3rd magnitude yellow star and a 5th magnitude blue star, considered by many to be the most beautiful double-star in the sky. Deneb itself is a massive supergiant star pumping energy/light equal to 60,000 suns. Cygnus is located in the Milky Way, and if your summer travel takes you to the Alpine area and the McDonald Observatory, be sure to look at those velvety really dark skies and enjoy the sights. This massive grouping spreads across the E-NE sky and spans three quarters of the sky from horizon to the zenith. And it is all ours to enjoy.
Around the northern circle, in the NNE, look for Cepheus. This constellation looks like a crooked little house to the right of the Big Dipper. Cepheus is the king who was married to Cassiopeia, of “Clash of the Titans” fame. She will look like a letter W or M stretched out. As midnight passes, you may be able to spot her in the NNE. She enraged the sea god Neptune by ridiculing his fish-tailed daughters and was punished by being lashed to her throne and forced to circle the north star forever, sometimes under water (beneath the horizon) and other times above it, but never able to go home.
Rise early this week to enjoy FIVE planets in the eastern sky about an hour before sunrise. Mercury will be low along the eastern horizon, then Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The distance between the orbits around the Sun affect where and when we can see them.
Until next time, Do let some stars get in your eyes-but don’t let the Moon break your heart.
