The southwest monsoon has covered most of India, meaning most residents are revelling in refreshing rains countrywide. While this was indeed a welcome sight for the erstwhile parched nation, it does mean that conditions will turn somewhat awry for skywatching this month on.
Nevertheless, if you are lucky enough to spot the odd clear night, there’s a ton you could stand to observe in the sky this month. From a super-bright Venus to the peaking of three back-to-back meteor showers, let’s look at what mesmerising celestial events are in store in July 2023!
July 1: Venus and Mars approach
Wasting no time, this month will start off with a quaint congregation between Venus and Mars. Despite a nearly-Full Moon blocking out much of everything in its brilliance, this planetary meeting will remain quite apparent in the night sky.
Venus is incredibly bright right now, and will only get more luminous in the coming days. In addition, the Moon will conduct its lunar business in another part of the sky. Spot the planetary congregation 3°33′ apart in the Leo constellation on this evening.
July 3: Thunder Moon/Supermoon
After watching the planetary meet-cute conclude, the Moon will unleash its full blaze over the Earth two days later. Our lunar satellite will attain its Full Moon state around 5:10 PM IST on this day.
Due to Moon’s proximity to the Earth during this time, it will also appear larger and brighter than usual. July will host the first of the four supermoons that are slated to grace us this year.
This Moon is sometimes called the Thunder Moon due to the increased frequency of thunderstorms during this period. It is also termed the Buck Moon since male deers show their new velvety antlers off around this time.
July 7: Earth’s aphelion
Due to the Earth’s elliptical orbit around the Sun, there is exactly one point where it is furthest away from our star. This occurs about two weeks after the June solstice, and is called the aphelion.
Thus, on this day, the Earth will shy far away from our central parent star. In India, this point will be reached late into the night, around 1:36 AM.
July 9: Venus at greatest brightness
If you’ve been feeling like Venus seems a little extra bright the past couple of weeks, fret not; you’re not going crazy.
Venus is already a massive introvert, deflecting most of the Sun’s luminous advances onto our planet. Most of this is due to the planet’s highly reflective acid clouds, making it the third-brightest natural object in the sky after the Sun and our Moon.
Nevertheless, it will shine even brighter on this day, reaching a visual magnitude of -4.7 (lower is better). The next time it will attain similar visibility levels will be in September this year.
July 17: New Moon on the dot
Perhaps blinded by the news of Venus’s recent extravagant performance, the Moon will shy away into its celestial sheets for a brief moment on this day.
Almost on the dot, the Moon will align itself perfectly between the Sun and the Earth at 12:01 PM, Indian time. Since this will take place at noon, Indians will not be able to observe the magical phenomenon, unfortunately.
July 22: Pluto at opposition
Gone, but certainly not forgotten. Pluto might’ve been reclassified as a dwarf planet, but it has not disappeared from our hearts. If you want to spot the dwarf, this is the perfect day for it, since it will be aligned perfectly with the Sun, the Earth in between.
While this alignment will help the Sun illuminate Pluto more than usual, you will still require equipment to view the small and distant ex-planet. But if you have your hands on telescopes or binoculars that do the trick, spot the lost family member within the Capricornus constellation.
July 29: Piscis Austrinid meteor shower peaks
Meteor showers don’t grace us every month, but boy, is it a treat when they do! The Piscis Austrinids comprise a somewhat subdued trio of meteors that round off the end of July.
In India, they usually break into performance between 9:13 PM and 5:25 AM. However, the Piscis Austrinids peak is slated to take place during broad daylight, i.e., around 3 PM IST.
Therefore, the best time to watch the event in India would be to stay up before and a little after dawn on this day. While this shower will peak at only 3-5 meteors an hour within the Piscis Austrinus constellation, that could make spotting one that much more special!
July 30-31: Southern Delta Aquariid and Alpha Capricornid meteor showers
While the Southern Delta Aquariids have no noticeable peak on any particular day, you could stand to witness up to 20 meteors in the dark sky — if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere.
Worry not, however, because the Alpha Capricornids will pick up slack in the Aquariids’ place, producing up to 5 meteors per hour at peak activity on this day. To observe this event, wait till 12 AM on July 31, and you might get some amazing views emanating from the Capricornus constellation.
While 3-5 meteors might not seem like a lot, you can think of them as a mere baton pass into the famous Perseids meteor shower that promises to put on quite a spectacle mid-August, peaking around a favourable New Moon, nonetheless!
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