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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report for the period between August 1 and August 31, 2023. Here are the events happening in the sky of southern California.

Mercury sets in the west at 9:09 p.m., PDT, one hour and 15 minutes after sunset on the 1^st. The sun sets at 7:54 p.m., PDT. The planet’s disk is 62-percent illuminated and 6.6 arcseconds wide, and so most telescopes cannot reveal its disk. On the 9^th, Mercury is at greatest eastern elongation. The planet sets earlier each night after that. On the 31^st, the sun sets at 7:20 p.m., PDT, and Mercury sets at 7:28 p.m., PDT. The planet is unobservable. Do not observe any planet when it comes close to the sun, for the danger to the eyes is great.

Venus sets in the west at 8:21 p.m., PDT, on the 1^st, 27 minutes after sunset, and so is unobservable. On the 31^st, Venus rises in the morning sky in the east at 4:37 a.m., PDT, and the sun rises at 6:26 a.m., PDT, one hour and 49 minutes later. Venus is ten-percent illuminated and 51 arcseconds wide.

Mars moves from Leo the Lion to Virgo the Maiden on August 17. On the 1^st, Mars sets in the west at 9:36 p.m., PDT, is 97-percent illuminated and 43.9 arcseconds wide, and is too small for most telescopes to reveal. On the 31^st, Mars sets at 8:26 p.m., PDT, an hour and six minutes after sunset. The disk of Mars will remain too small to be seen until a few months before January, 2025, the time of the planet’s next opposition.

Jupiter is in Aries the Ram. On the 1^st, Jupiter rises in the east-northeast at 12:17 a.m., PDT. On the 31^st, Jupiter rises at 10:22 p.m., PDT, and the planet then is 45 arcseconds wide. A magnification of 50x will show the Red Spot, and the four bright Galilean moons may be seen moving back and forth, roughly in a line centered on Jupiter.

Saturn is in Aquarius the Water Bearer. On the 1^st, the planet rises in the east-southeast at 9:11 p.m., PDT, and it rises at 7:08 p.m., PDT, on the 31^st. Saturn is 40 arcseconds wide. A magnification of 50x is needed to see the rings and Saturn’s largest moon Titan.

Uranus is in Aries the Ram. On the 1^st, Uranus rises in the east-northeast at 12:42 a.m., PDT, and at 10:42 p.m., PDT, on the 31^st.  On the 15^th, Uranus is at Right Ascension 3^h 22^m 43^s and declination +18° 12ʹ 53ʺ. A magnification of 150x is needed to see its 3.5-arcsecond-wide disk.

Neptune is in Pisces the Fishes. On the 1^st, the planet rises in the east at 10:07 p.m., PDT. On the 31^st, Neptune rises at 8:07 p.m., PDT. On the 15^th, Neptune is at Right Ascension 23^h 51^m 38^s and declination -2° 16ʹ 59ʺ.  A magnification of 150x is needed to see its 2.3-arcsecond-wide disk.

Full moon occurs on the 1^st, last quarter on the 8^th, new moon on the 16^th, first quarter on the 24^th, and full moon again on the 30^th. When two full moons occur in the same month, the second full moon is called a “blue moon.” The moon does not, however, change color. This second full moon also occurs when the moon is at perigee, the closest point in its orbit to the earth. The event is called a supermoon because the moon is said to be brighter and larger than usual, even though the difference is not discernable to the eye. The second August full moon is a “blue supermoon.”

SPECIAL EVENTS

The Perseids meteors are active from July 14 to September 1. They peak from the night of August 12 through the morning of the 13^th. The waning crescent moon is only ten-percent full and will not interfere with observation. Normal rates as seen from rural locations, range from 50 to 75 shower members per hour at maximum. The Perseids are particles released from comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. They are called Perseids because the radiant, the area of the sky from which the meteors seem to originate, is located near the prominent constellation of Perseus the Hero.

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