What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (2024)

6 min read

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.

  • 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.
What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (1)

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.

What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (2)

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.

What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (3)What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (4)

before , An illustrated sky chart shows the night sky facing southward around 9:30 pm in August. The Location of the Lagoon Nebula is circled below center. Below and to the right is the constellation Scorpius, and to its left is the Teapot asterism.

after , An illustrated sky chart shows a zoomed-in view of the sky similar to what binoculars would reveal. Most of the scene is occupied by the star patter, or asterism, known as The Teapot. The Lagoon Nebula appears above the Teapot star pattern. A dashed line passes across the scene from the teapot handle, past the top of its lid, to the nebula, as an indication of how to locate the nebula.

before and after

Finding the Lagoon Nebula

August 2024

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.

What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (5)

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.

What's Up: August 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA - NASA Science (2024)

FAQs

What's in the sky in August 2024? ›

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.

When can we see planets from Earth in 2024? ›

Venus: The Dazzling Planet

When is Venus visible in 2024? Now until December 31, 2024: Look west after sunset. (The best time to view Venus in the evening sky in 2024 will be from October 5-December 31, 2024.)

What is happening in the sky in August? ›

August night sky brings the famous Perseid Meteor Shower, followed by the Full Sturgeon Moon—a Blue Moon Supermoon. Plus, there's a chance that a “new” star will appear in the night sky. Here is everything worth watching, including many picturesque planet-Moon pairings and suggestions for telescopic observations.

What will the solar activity be in August 2024? ›

Between August 8-10, 2024, five Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) were observed leaving the Sun, prompting geomagnetic storm watches. The CMEs reached Earth over the weekend (August 11-12).

Will there be a meteor shower in 2024? ›

The 2024 Orionid meteor shower peaks on the night between October 20 and October 21. The Orionids can produce bright, fast meteors that make for a spectacular show with the constellation Orion in the background.

What 5 planets align in 2024? ›

A celestial event is deemed a parade when several planets are involved in the lineup — like this one, which will include all but two planets. The alignment will consist of Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, according to the astronomy app Star Walk.

What's going on in space in 2024? ›

In terms of other national-level scientific space missions, NASA's Europa Clipper probe, and ESA's Hera probe are scheduled to launch in 2024. NASA's Ingenuity helicopter ended operation in January due to damages to rotor blades after its 72nd flight. This year is also expected to see many lunar landing attempts.

What is the planetary movement in 2024? ›

The Parade of Planets, or Planetary Parade, will occur on June 3, 2024. This rare alignment will showcase six planets – Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune – visible together in the sky. Such an alignment is uncommon, making it a significant event for both astronomers and astrologers.

What is the planet conjunction in 2024? ›

Conjunctions - 2024
DATETIMEPLANETS
04 Jun 20245:04 CDTJupiter-Mercury
15 July 20244:22 CDTMars-Uranus
26 Aug 202410:21 CDTVenus-Mercury
14 August 202411:52 CDTJupiter-Mars
8 more rows

What will happen in August? ›

There are many special days in August observed in India, such as National Handloom Day (7 Aug), Quit India Day (9 Aug), Partition Horrors Rememberance Day (14 Aug), Independence Day (15 Aug), National Sports Day (29 Aug), Onam (29 Aug), and Raksha Bandhan (30 Aug).

What natural phenomenon can be seen in the sky at night in August? ›

The Perseid meteor shower peaks

This month will see the peak of one of the best meteor showers of the year. The Perseid meteor shower will reach its maximum on 12-13 August, giving us the opportunity to see up to 100 meteors per hour.

What celestial event happened in August 2024? ›

Top astronomy events in August 2024 includes Perseid meteor shower, blue moon and more.

Who is going to Mars in 2024 NASA? ›

NASA has selected a crew of four for the next NASA's Human Exploration Research Analog mission, a simulated mission to Mars. From left are Kamak Ebadi, Susan Hilbig, Abhishek Bhagat, and Carli Domenico. Editor's Note, Jan. 26, 2024: The crew roster for this HERA mission has been updated.

Why is August critical of the NASA mission? ›

42. Why is August critical of the NASA mission? August is critical of the NASA mission because she thinks it's not possible.

What time is the Perseid peak in 2024? ›

The shower is expected to reach peak activity at around 07:00 PDT on 12 August 2024, and so the best displays might be seen before dawn on 12 August.

What planet transits in August 2024? ›

At the same time, on 25 August, Venus transits in the Virgo sign and after that on 26 August 2024, Mars transits in the Gemini zodiac sign. At the end of August 2024, Mercury, the planet responsible for speech & intelligence, first rises in the Cancer zodiac sign on 29 August 2024.

What is Venus in August 2024? ›

On August 25, 2024, Venus - the planet of love, beauty and wealth – will move into the analytical sign of Virgo. Even though Virgo is ruled by Mercury, a friend of Venus, this earthy sign is where Venus gets debilitated or powerless.

What day in August is the meteor shower? ›

The Perseids are one of the brighter meteor showers of the year. They occur every year between July 17 and August 24 and tend to peak around August 9-13.

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