1. Highlighting the Near and Deep Sky
What’s Up E W
Highlighting the Near and Deep Sky
July , 2017 S

2. General Information July 2017
Among this month’s celestial happenings:
We reach a calendar benchmark and an orbital apside.
We celebrate a historic space mission’s anniversary and ponder a related observing opportunity.
We encounter another reminder of the difference between natural and artificial time.
Sunset Range: 8:44 p.m. (July 1st) to 8:28 p.m. (July 31st).
End of Astronomical Twilight (Full Darkness* – Sun 18° below horizon): 10:37 p.m. (July 1st) to 10:10 p.m. (July 31st).
* Usually dark enough for observing about a half hour before this.

3. Moon Phases July 2017 Sat., 1st – First Quarter Sun., 9th – Full Moon
Sun., 16th – Last Quarter (Fri./Sat. observing opportunities July 14th/15th)
Sun., 23rd – New Moon (Fri./Sat. observing opportunities July 21st/22nd)
Sun., 30th – First Quarter
Roughly speaking:
First Quarter Moon is highest at sunset and sets at midnight
Full Moon rises at sunset and is in the sky all night
Last (“Third”) Quarter Moon rises at midnight and is highest at dawn
New Moon sets at sunset and is absent from the sky all night

4. Celestial Events
July 2017
Sun., 2nd – Midpoint of the year is at the middle of this day.
Mon., 3rd – Earth at aphelion, AU (94,505,901 miles) from Sun.
Thurs., 6th – Saturn shines all night about 3º below the waxing gibbous Moon.
Thurs., 6th – Moon at apogee; distance Earth-radii.
Sun., 9th –. Observational Challenge. Pluto at opposition. Two-year anniversary of New Horizons closest approach (July 14, 2015).
Fri., 21st – Moon at perigee; distance Earth-radii (11% closer than on the 6th).
Mon., 24th – Binocular Challenge. Very thin crescent Moon near western horizon. Mercury 5º to upper left. Regulus just to Mercury’s upper left.
Wed., 25th – The Equation of Time reaches a shallow minimum of minutes.

5. (~30 min. before full darkness)
July 15th, 10:00 p.m.
(~30 min. before full darkness)
C/2015 v2 (Johnson)
For tonight, June 19th, 10:00 p.m. is also about 30 min. before full dark-ness.
Milky Way E W
Jupiter
Pluto
Saturn S

6. What’s Up programs are posted on the RVAS Website!
Find them under “Tips and Topics” or at:
Questions
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7. Stargazers Online for June 19th