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Skywatching Home What’s Up: December 2024… Skywatching Skywatching Home What’s Up Eclipses Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ
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Catch December’s Celestial Highlights!
This month, Venus dazzles as the “Evening Star,” Jupiter reaches its brightest for the year, and the Geminid meteor shower peaks under challenging moonlit skies.
Skywatching Highlights
All Month – Planet Visibility:
Mercury: Visible very low in the southeast just before sunrise during the last half of the month. Venus: Shines brightly as the “Evening Star” in the southwest after sunset, climbing higher each evening. Mars: Brightens significantly during December, rising in the east-northeast and visible from late evening to early morning. Jupiter: Reaches opposition on December 7, making it visible all night, rising in the east-northeast. Saturn: Visible after sunset in the southern sky, shifting slightly westward as the month progresses. December 3-5 – Venus and the Moon: Look southwest after sunset to see a beautiful pairing. On December 4, a slim crescent Moon will sit directly below Venus.
December 7 – Jupiter at Opposition: Jupiter will shine at its brightest for the year, rising in the east-northeast among Taurus’s stars. Best viewed through a telescope for details like the Galilean moons and atmospheric belts.
December 14 – Jupiter, the Moon, and Aldebaran: Look for Jupiter midway between the nearly full Moon and bright orange star Aldebaran in the evening sky.
December 17 – Mars and the Moon: Mars, glowing brightly in its approach to opposition, appears super close to the waning gibbous Moon.
All Month – Winter Triangle: Formed by Sirius, Procyon, and Betelgeuse, this asterism marks the arrival of winter skies and is a prominent feature throughout the season.
December 13-14 – Geminid Meteor Shower: The peak occurs under a nearly full Moon, reducing visibility, but bright meteors may still be spotted the week before.
December 21 – Winter Solstice: At 4:20 a.m. EST, the solstice marks the beginning of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and summer in the Southern Hemisphere.
Transcript
What’s Up for December?
Venus, Jupiter, and Mars shine brightly; the stars of winter and their pointy little friend; and “Meteors, meet the Moon.”
Sky chart showing the changing position of Venus after sunset during December. NASA/JPL-Caltech Starting off with the planets, Venus is hard to miss in the southwest after sunset – it’s that dazzling bright “evening star.” You’ll find it getting a bit higher in the sky each evening through the month. On December 4th, look for a slim crescent Moon hanging right below it, making for a great photo opportunity!
Sky chart showing the changing position of Venus after sunset during December. NASA/JPL-Caltech Saturn is visible toward the south beginning at nightfall. Look for it to track a bit farther to the west as the weeks go by. Meanwhile, Jupiter reaches opposition on December 7th, meaning it’s at its brightest for the year and visible all night long. You’ll find it rising in the east-northeast as darkness falls, among the stars of the constellation Taurus. Mid-month, around December 14th, watch for Jupiter sitting between the nearly full Moon and Taurus’s brightest star, orange-colored Aldebaran.
Next, Mars will also be putting on its own show, doubling its brightness during December as it heads toward its own opposition in January. Early in the month, it rises about four hours after dark, but by New Year’s Eve, it’s rising just about 90 minutes after sunset – always shining with its distinctive reddish hue. And on December 17th, you’ll find the Red Planet super close to the Moon, which will be just two days past its full phase.
The stars of winter are making their grand entrance in December. As evening falls, you’ll see the mighty hunter Orion rising in the east, with Taurus the bull above it, and the stars of the twins in Gemini to their left. These constellations host some wonderful sights – like the Crab Nebula and Pleiades star cluster in Taurus and the misty Orion Nebula, which hangs below Orion’s belt. If you look to the western sky soon after dark, you can still spot the three bright stars of the Summer Triangle getting quite low on the horizon. But as they depart, three bright stars of winter bring their own prominent triangular shape to mark the season.
Once you spot Orion’s distinctive belt of three stars, you’re well on your way to finding what we call the Winter Triangle. Just follow the belt stars to the left and slightly downward – they point right to Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Then look upward and to the left of Sirius to spot Procyon, and back up toward Orion to find reddish Betelgeuse at its shoulder. These three bright stars form an equilateral triangle that’s visible throughout the season.
The Geminid meteor shower peaks after midnight in the early morning of December 14th, and they’re usually one of the best meteor showers of the year under good conditions. This year, the nearly full Moon will wash out the fainter meteors on the peak night. Still, the Geminids are known for bright meteors, and it’s common to spot their shooting stars up to a week before the peak. If you’re up before dawn that week, it’s worth looking up, just in case you spot a speck of dust from space streaking through the morning sky.
And here are the phases of the Moon for December.
The phases of the Moon for December 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech Stay up to date on all of NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at NASA Science.
I’m Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.
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Skywatching Home What’s Up: November 2024… Skywatching Skywatching Home Eclipses What’s Up Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ See the Moon Hide a Bright Star
In the early morning hours of November 27, catch a rare lunar occultation of Spica visible from parts of the U.S. and Canada.
Skywatching Highlights
All month – Planet visibility report: Saturn shines in the south most of the night, Jupiter rises in the early evening alongside Taurus and Orion, while Mars trails a couple of hours behind, visible high in the early morning sky. November 4 – Slim crescent Moon pairs with Venus. Enjoy a beautiful sight just after sunset as the Moon and Venus meet up in the southwestern sky. November 10 – Saturn & the Moon. The ringed planet has a close pairing with the Moon tonight (perfect for binoculars) November 27 – Lunar occultation of Spica. Early risers in the eastern U.S. and Canada can catch the Moon passing in front of Spica this morning, briefly hiding the bright star from view. Transcript
What’s Up for November?
When to look for Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars this month, a NASA spacecraft swings by Venus on its way to the Sun, and the tricky business of seeing the Moon hide a bright star. And stick around until the end for photos of highlights from last month’s skies.
Saturn is visible toward the south for most of the night. For observers in the Americas, it has a close meetup with the Moon on the 10th, when the pair will appear less than a degree apart just after dark, making for a great sight through binoculars. Check the sky again around midnight, and you’ll see the Moon has visibly shifted a couple of degrees west of Saturn, showing evidence of the Moon’s orbital motion in just a few hours.
In late 2024, Jupiter could be found high overhead as dawn approached with the bright stars of Taurus and Orion. (Jupiter is the bright object at top, right of center.) NASA/Preston Dyches Jupiter is rising in the east early in the night, together with the bright stars of the constellations Taurus and Orion, and working its way across the sky by dawn. By the end of November, it’s rising just as the sky is getting dark. Mars follows behind Jupiter, rising about three hours after the giant planet.
As in October, early risers will find the Red Planet high overhead in the morning sky before dawn. In the evening sky, Venus is low in the southwest following sunset throughout the month of November. It’s blazing bright and unmistakable if you find a relatively unobstructed view. It appears much higher in the sky for those in the Southern Hemisphere, who’ll also be able to easily observe Mercury after sunset this month. And on the 4th, a slim crescent Moon will appear just below Venus for a beautiful pairing as the glow of sunset fades.
Now, staying with Venus, one of NASA’s intrepid solar system explorers is headed for a close encounter with this Earth-sized hothouse of a planet on November 6th. Parker Solar Probe studies our planet’s nearest star, the Sun. Its mission is to trace the flow of energy that heats the Sun’s outer atmosphere and accelerates the million-mile-per-hour stream of particles it emits. It makes its measurements from super close to the Sun, within the region where all the action happens. To do this, the spacecraft was designed to fly within just 4 million miles of the Sun’s surface, which is 10 times closer than the orbit of the closest planet, Mercury. No other spacecraft has ever gotten this close to the Sun before. In the six years since its launch, the spacecraft has made a bunch of approaches to the Sun, using flybys of the planet Venus to shape its orbit. The November 6th flyby is the final such maneuver, intended to send the spacecraft toward its three closest-ever solar approaches, starting on December 24th. During this last Venus flyby, the mission will capture images of the planet. Previous views returned by Parker showed that the spacecraft could actually see features of the Venusian surface through its dense cloud cover. So look out for Venus in the evening sky, as the brilliant planet helps a craft from Earth to touch the face of the Sun.
In the couple of hours before sunrise on November 27th, skywatchers in the eastern half of the U.S. and Canada will have the chance to witness an occultation – an event where the Moon passes in front of, and temporarily hides, a bright star – in this case Spica. Observers in other parts of the world will see the Moon pass extremely close to Spica, but won’t see it cover up the star. This occultation is one of a series that began in June and will continue monthly through late next year. These happen as the Moon’s orbit slowly shifts northward and southward across the sky, and every so often, its path crosses in front of Spica monthly for a time. But each occultation is only visible from a small portion of Earth. For example, while this November event favors North American viewers, South American observers will get their chance next April. For U.S. skywatchers, this November occultation is the last good opportunity in this series to see the Moon occult Spica until 2032, when a new series of monthly occultations will begin for locations across the globe. Now, if you miss this event, don’t worry!
The Moon also passes in front of three other bright stars from time to time. This means that no matter where you’re located, you’ll have the opportunity before too long to witness the impressive sight of a bright star briefly disappearing behind the Moon.
Watch our video for views of what some of the highlights we told you about in last month’s video actually looked like.
The phases of the Moon for November 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech Above are the phases of the Moon for November.
Stay up to date on all of NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at science.nasa.gov.
I’m Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.
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Skywatching Home What’s Up: October 2024… Skywatching Skywatching Home Eclipses What’s Up Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ Comets: Unpredictable, But Irresistible
A new comet is passing through the inner solar system! Time will tell if it’s the brightest of the year, once it appears in twilight after about October 14.
Skywatching Highlights
All month – Planet visibility report: Look for Venus low in the west just after sunset; Saturn can be seen toward the southeast as soon as it gets dark; Mars rises around midnight; and Jupiter rises in the first half of the night (rising earlier as the month goes on). October 2 – New moon October 11 – Europa is easily observable to one side of Jupiter by itself this morning using binoculars. October 14-31 – Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) becomes visible low in the west following sunset. If the comet’s tail is well-illuminated by sunlight, it could be visible to the unaided eye. The first week and a half (Oct. 14-24) is the best time to observe, using binoculars or a small telescope. October 13-14 – After dark both nights, look for the nearly full Moon with Saturn toward the southeast. October 17 – Full moon October 20 – The Moon rises near Jupiter, with the giant planet looking extremely bright. You should be able to find them low in the east after around 10 pm. October 23-24 – Early risers will be able to spot Mars together with the Moon, high overhead in the south both mornings. October 25 – Europa is easily observable to one side of Jupiter by itself this morning using binoculars. Transcript
What’s Up for October?
This month’s viewing tips for Venus, Saturn, Mars and Jupiter. When’s the best time to observe the destination of NASA’s next deep space mission? And how you can see a (potentially bright) comet this month?
And watch our video ’till the end for photos of highlights from last month’s skies.
Sky chart showing Mars near the Moon on October 23. The pair appear quite high overhead, along with Jupiter. NASA/JPL-Caltech Up first, we look at the visibility of the planets in October. Look for Venus low in the west just after sunset. It’s setting by the time the sky is fully dark. Saturn is visible toward the southeast as soon as it gets dark out, and sets by dawn. Mars rises around midnight all month. By dawn it has climbed quite high into the south-southeastern sky, appearing together with Jupiter. Now, Jupiter is rising in the first half of the night. In early October you’ll find it high in the south as dawn approaches, and later in the month it’s progressed farther over to the west before sunrise.
And, speaking of Jupiter, NASA plans to launch its latest solar system exploration mission to one of the giant planet’s moons this month. Europa Clipper is slated to blast off as early as October 10th. It’s thought that Europa holds an enormous ocean of salty liquid water beneath its icy surface. That makes this the first mission dedicated to studying an ocean world beyond Earth. Europa Clipper is designed to help us understand whether this icy moon could support some form of life, and along the way it’ll teach us more about the conditions that make a world habitable.
Now, if you’ve ever pointed binoculars or a telescope at Jupiter, you know the thrill of seeing the little star-like points of light next to it that are its four large moons, which were first observed by Galileo in 1610.
There are two mornings in October, the 11th and the 25th, when you can most easily observe Europa. These are times when the moon is at its greatest separation from the planet as seen from here on Earth, and it’s all by itself to one side of Jupiter. So be sure to have your own peek at Jupiter’s moon Europa this month, as a new NASA mission begins its journey to explore an ocean in the sky.
Now a look at Moon and planet pair-ups for October. On the 13th and 14th after dark, look for the nearly full Moon with Saturn toward the southeast. Then on the evening of October 20th, the Moon rises near Jupiter, with the giant planet looking extremely bright.
You should be able to find them low in the east after around 10 pm that night. Then, in the morning of Oct. 23rd and 24th, early risers will be able to spot Mars together with the Moon, high overhead in the south.
Sky chart showing the location of Comet C/2023 A3 between Oct. 14 and Oct 24 following sunset. The comet climbs higher each evening, but also grows fainter. NASA/JPL-Caltech October offers a chance to observe what could be the brightest comet of the year. Earlier this year we got a look at Comet 12P, which was visible with binoculars but not super bright. Now another of these ancient and icy dust balls is streaking through our neighborhood on an 80,000-year orbit from the distant reaches of the Oort Cloud. The comet, known as C/2023 A3, aka Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, is currently speeding through the inner solar system. It passed its closest to the Sun in late September, and will be at its closest to Earth on October 13th. And after that time, through the end of the month, will be the best time to look for it. This is when the comet will become visible low in the western sky beginning during twilight.
It will quickly rise higher each subsequent evening, making it easier to observe, but it’ll also be getting a little fainter each night. As with all comets, predictions for how bright it could get are uncertain. If the comet’s tail is brilliantly illuminated by the Sun, predictions show that it could become bright enough to see with the unaided eye. But comets have a way of surprising us, so we’ll just have to wait and see.
Your best shot at seeing it will be from around October 14th through the 24th, with binoculars or a small telescope, and a reasonably clear view toward the west. So good luck, and clear skies, comet hunters!
Watch our video for views of what some of the highlights we told you about in last month’s video actually looked like.
The phases of the Moon for October 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech And here are the phases of the Moon for October. Stay up to date on all of NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at science.nasa.gov. I’m Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.
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Skywatching Skywatching Home Eclipses What’s Up Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ A Harvest supermoon eclipse
A partial lunar eclipse makes the full supermoon on Sept. 17th extra super. Also, chances to observe five planets this month, and a global night for observing.
Highlights
All month – Venus sits low in the west following sunset. Saturn’s visible all night. Jupiter and Mars rise in the couple of hours after midnight and are visible in the southeast before sunrise. September 1-7 – If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, you can spot Mercury this week during morning twilight if you can find an unobstructed view toward the east. It appears low in the east just before dawn. September 2 – New moon September 14 – Join fellow Moon enthusiasts around the world for International Observe the Moon Night tonight! Find an event or simply observe at home. Details at moon.nasa.gov/observe. September 16 – The Moon leads Saturn across the sky tonight. Find them in the southeastern sky following sunset. For the western U.S., the Moon will begin to occult, or cover, Saturn the following morning before sunrise. September 17 – Full moon – Harvest moon – Supermoon – Partial lunar eclipse. The eclipse is in the evening hours for U.S. observers (while the Moon is rising for the West Coast). The Moon looks ever so slightly bigger and brighter that the average full moon, though in practice it’s tough to tell the difference. The September full moon is often called the harvest moon, due to its association with harvest time in the Northern Hemisphere. September 22 – The Moon passes through the Pleiades star cluster tonight for U.S. observers. September 23 – Jupiter and the Moon glide across the sky together this evening. They rise late tonight and climb high into the southeast as dawn approaches. September 25 – The crescent moon appears near Mars this morning. See them with Jupiter and the bright stars of the winter constellations in the predawn sky. The Moon passes through the Pleiades star cluster tonight for U.S. observers. Transcript
What’s Up for September? Five planets and a supermoon eclipse, a NASA solar sail that you can spot from the ground, and a global night for the Moon. And stick around until the end to view some highlights shared in last month’s video.
Starting with the visibility of the planets this month, you’ll notice Venus sitting very low in the west in the hour following sunset. Over the next several months it will rise higher, increasingly becoming a fixture of the early evening sky for the rest of the year. Saturn’s in the southeastern sky early in the evening. From there it’ll be visible overhead all night, and you’ll find it setting in the west as dawn approaches.
Sky chart showing The Moon near Jupiter in the morning sky before sunrise on September 24, along with some of the well-known (Northern Hemisphere) winter stars and constellations. NASA/JPL-Caltech As for the ongoing pair-up of Jupiter and Mars, Jupiter’s rising around midnight or soon after, with Mars rising an hour to an hour and a half behind it. So it’s best to look for them high in the south-southeastern sky in the early morning before sunrise. And in morning twilight during the first week of September, if you can find an unobstructed view toward the east, it’s a decent opportunity to spot Mercury for those in the Northern Hemisphere.
Turning now to the Moon, the full moon on September 17th is a supermoon, meaning it’s just a little bit closer to Earth in its orbit than your average full moon. It looks ever so slightly bigger and brighter, though in practice, the difference is hard to see. It really is super though, as the September full moon is often called the “Harvest Moon” given its association with harvest time in the Northern Hemisphere, plus it’s also going to show us a partial lunar eclipse.
You’ll see a little bite taken out of one side of the Moon over about an hour.
Check the timing of the eclipse for your local area using your favorite skywatching app or website. In Europe, the eclipse takes place in the early morning hours; while in the U.S., it’s in the evening – and that’s while the Moon’s rising, for the West Coast.
Sky chart showing the full moon very near Saturn in the morning sky for U.S. observers on September 17. The Moon occults, or passes in front of, Saturn as the pair get lower in the sky. NASA/JPL-Caltech As for Moon-planet pair-ups, the Moon leads Saturn across the sky on the 16th.
Look for the pair in the southeastern sky following sunset. For those in the U.S., the pair will appear very close together early the next morning on the 17th, as they get lower in the western sky. In fact, those in the western half of the U.S. can actually watch the Moon start to occult, or pass in front of Saturn before they set.
On the 22nd, the Moon rises a couple of hours after dark sitting super close to the Pleiades. And this is kind of a special pairing if you’re in the U.S., as the Moon will actually pass right through the Pleiades over the course of the night. So if you have binoculars or a small telescope, you can look periodically over the course of the night as the Moon crosses directly in front of the bright star cluster.
On the 23rd, the Moon rises in the late evening hours with giant Jupiter. They climb high into the southeast sky as dawn approaches.
And then on the morning of the 25th, the crescent Moon appears near Mars.
This last full week of September is really lovely before the sky brightens, as you have the Moon and two bright planets together with the bright stars of the winter constellations. So don’t miss it!
There’s a new opportunity to observe a bright NASA spacecraft sailing across the night sky. NASA’s Advanced Composite Solar Sail System, or “ACS3,” is a small satellite that’s testing new technologies in low Earth orbit. It recently deployed its 30-foot-wide solar sails. These are a means of propulsion that could allow small spacecraft to “sail on sunlight.” The ACS3 solar sails are highly reflective, and make the spacecraft appear nearly as bright as Sirius, the brightest star in the sky. You can find out when the solar sail spacecraft will pass over your location using the NASA app on your mobile device.
International Observe the Moon Night is September 14th. It’s an annual event when fellow Moon enthusiasts come together worldwide to participate in events and, you guessed it, observe our nearby natural satellite. You can join from wherever you are. Attend or host a virtual or in-person event, or simply observe the Moon from home.
20. On the 14th, in addition to many lunar maria and all 6 of the Apollo landing sites, this year offers an opportunity to see the Marius Hills – volcanic domes and cones that are notoriously difficult to observe even with a telescope, unless sunlight is streaming across them nearly horizontally. Fortunately, that will be the case on International Observe the Moon Night 2024, when we’ll get to watch a lunar sunrise across this knobby terrain. So however you pronounce it, grab your telescope, or find an event near you, and join this annual celebration of observation.
Here are a few views of the highlights in last month’s sky.
And here are the phases of the Moon for September.
The phases of the Moon for September 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech Stay up to date on NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at science.nasa.gov. I’m Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.
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What’s Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA
What to look for:
A planetary rendezvous, meteors, and a “star forge”!
Two planets meet for a super close conjunction, the Perseid meteor shower peaks, and look for the Lagoon Nebula – a stellar nursery in Sagittarius.
Highlights
August 4 – New moon August 11 – The Perseid meteor shower peaks overnight tonight! Provided you have clear skies, viewing conditions will be favorable this year, as the Moon sets by around 11:30 pm local time. Meteor activity picks up from then until dawn. August 14 – Jupiter and Mars have an extremely close pair-up called a conjunction this morning. They’ll appear just a third of a degree apart, which is less than the width of the full Moon. Find them in the eastern sky in the couple of hours before sunrise. August 19 – Full moon August 20 – The Moon chases Saturn across the sky tonight. The pair rise in the east shortly after dark, and trek toward the west together until dawn. August 27 – This morning the crescent moon joins Mars and Jupiter to form a captivating trio. Look for them in the east in the hour or so before sunrise. All month – You can use binoculars or a telescope to observe the Lagoon Nebula all month in the first few hours after dark. It’s located in the constellation Sagittarius near the star pattern known as “The Teapot.” Similar in size and brightness to the Orion Nebula, it’s a cauldron of star formation located about 4,000 light years away. Sky chart showing the conjunction of Mars and Jupiter in the morning of August 14. NASA/JPL-Caltech Transcript
What’s Up for August? A super close meetup of Jupiter and Mars, the outlook for the Perseid meteors, and see a stellar nursery in the Lagoon Nebula.
During the month of August, the Red Planet, Mars, speeds past our solar system’s largest planet, Jupiter, in the a.m. sky. They have an extremely close pair-up, called a conjunction, on August 14th, when they’ll appear just a third of a degree apart, which is less than the width of the full Moon.
The view from NASA’s Eyes on the Solar System reveals the two planets arranged along the same line of sight, which is why they appear so close together in the sky at this time.
Mars quickly pulls away from Jupiter over the following mornings, but on the 27th, the crescent moon joins the two planets to form a captivating trio in the morning sky.
Sky chart showing a planetary trio of the crescent moon, Jupiter, and Mars on the morning of August 27. NASA/JPL-Caltech Saturn flies solo most of the month on the opposite side of the sky, though the Moon chases close behind the Ringed Planet on August 20th. The pair rise shortly after dark, and trek toward the west together until dawn.
The warm summer nights of August in the Northern Hemisphere make the Perseid meteor shower an annual favorite. This year’s peak night for Perseids comes on August 11th, and into morning twilight on the 12th. Provided you have clear skies, viewing conditions will be favorable this year, as the Moon sets by around 11:30 pm local time.
Meteor activity picks up from then until dawn. From darker viewing locations, meteor counts of 50 to 75 per hour are pretty normal at the peak.
The Perseids appear to originate from a place in the sky that rises in the northeast, so lie back and face roughly in that direction, but try to take in as much of the sky as you can in your view, as meteors can appear all over.
All the stars in the sky share a common origin in giant clouds of gas and dust called nebulas. And one such stellar nursery, the Lagoon Nebula, is well placed to observe in the August sky.
Image Before/After The Lagoon Nebula will feel familiar to you if you’ve ever observed the Orion Nebula – with the latter being just a bit brighter. Being about three times wider than the full moon, it’s still relatively easy to find, even under suburban skies, with binoculars or a small telescope.
The Lagoon Nebula is located in the constellation Sagittarius, which regular skywatchers will know is synonymous with the faintly glowing band of the Milky Way core. You’ll find it here, just above the top of the star pattern known as the Teapot.
The nebula is located about 4,000 light years away. Its oblong structure is about 100 light years long by about 50 light years wide. It’s a cauldron of intense star forming activity, with many young stars blazing brightly, causing the surrounding gas to glow. That glow is faint and colorless when peering at the Lagoon Nebula through binoculars, but long-exposure photos reveal its colorful nature. The bright stars are also sculpting the nebula, creating voids and turbulent knots and streamers of gas. The nebula gets its name from one of these dense, dark clouds that stretches across its middle, looking something like a watery lagoon.
The Lagoon Nebula appears high overhead in August for those in the Southern Hemisphere, and quite low for those at higher northern latitudes, but it’s visible throughout the lower 49 United States. If you can locate the stars in the Teapot, you should be able to observe the nebula too. To find it, follow a line toward the west, twice the distance from the top of the Teapot’s handle to the top of its lid.
Nebulas can be challenging to observe, even with a telescope. But with its large size and relative brightness, the Lagoon Nebula offers a great opportunity to see one of these star forges for yourself in August.
Here are the phases of the Moon for August.
The phases of the Moon for August 2024. Stay up to date on NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at science.nasa.gov. I’m Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.
Skywatching Resources
NASA’s Night Sky Network NASA’s Watch the Skies Blog Daily Moon Observing Guide About the ‘What’s Up’ Production Team
“What’s Up” is NASA’s longest running web video series. It had its first episode in April 2007 with original host Jane Houston Jones. Today, Preston Dyches, Christopher Harris, and Lisa Poje are the space enthusiasts who produce this monthly video series at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Additional astronomy subject matter guidance is provided by JPL’s Bill Dunford, Lyle Tavernier, and the Night Sky Network’s Kat Troche.
The What’s Up team celebrates the memory of Gary Spiers, who provided astronomy observing guidance for the series for many years.
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