Hey Patrons! Keep an eye out for these celestial events in August! (Patreon)

Here's an brief outline of some events to be familiar with in August- so sorry I'm a few days late, had a pretty busy weekend :'(

Fairly quiet month, with the biggest event is this coming New moon... it is the best time to view the Milky way of the year, with of course the Perseids Meteor shower being a wonderful time to stargaze the week prior. 

August 3rd- Sturgeon Moon.
Last night's moon looked pretty bright to many of you- that's because like any other full moon, it is it's shiniest when completely illuminated. This is generally not a great time to go stargazing, but it is a good time to go for a walk at night, with the full moon illuminating the night side of Earth the entire night. 

August 11,12- Perseids Meteor Shower Peak
This is one of the best meteor showers of the year, and it coincides with a Last quarter Moon, making it arguably the best time of the year to go stargazing (at least until the moonrise). You can enjoy the best time of year to view the milky way and plenty of meteors, around 60/hour in the hours following sunset. 

August 13th- Venus at Greatest Western Elongation
This means if you wake up before dawn, you will see a bright shining "star" to the east, and it is the best time in the morning to view Venus, since it is at its highest elevation and distance from the sun. If viewed through a telescope, Venus is 50% illuminated. 

August 15th- Double Shadow Transit on Jupiter
At 9pm Pacific time, Ganymede's and Io's Shadow will cross the surface of Jupiter (with Io also in transit), so this is a fun time to pull out the telescope and try and observe them! 

August 19th, New Moon.
This is the best time of the year to observe the Milky Way, as it rises after sunset and is in the sky all night long. The lack of a moon in the sky means there is no celestial light pollution, so if you can travel away from city lights you will have the best view of our home galaxy!

 August 22th- Another Double Shadow Transit on Jupiter
At 11:30pm Pacific time, Ganymede's and Io's Shadow will cross the surface of Jupiter AGAIN (with Io also in transit), so this is a fun time to pull out the telescope and try and observe them!  

August 28th- Ceres at Opposition
The Largest object in the Asteroid Belt- the Dwarf planet Ceres will be at opposition, the closest approach all year. You can see it with binoculars or a telescope, and if you capture photos of it throughout the night you can actually see it moving!