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The new moon on Aug. 23 at 2:06 a.m. EDT (0606 UTC) can be a black moon, outlined because the third new moon in a season that may see 4 new moons. Three days later, the moon will make a detailed go to Mars within the night sky.
When the solar and moon share the identical celestial longitude, you get a new moon. This can be known as a conjunction (and the identical time period applies to different celestial our bodies). As the illuminated aspect of the moon faces away from Earth, new moons are invisible to observers on the bottom except the moon passes instantly in entrance of the solar — an eclipse. This would not occur each new moon as a result of the moon’s orbit isn’t completely aligned with the aircraft of the Earth’s orbit; it’s tilted about 5 levels. (The subsequent partial solar eclipse is on Sept. 21, and shall be seen from the South Pacific, New Zealand, and Antarctica.)
Related: A rare Black Moon rises with the sun Aug. 23: Here’s what to expect
Humans have used new moons in a wide range of calendrical systems to time the start of the month. Jewish, Islamic, Hindu, Māori and Chinese calendars all use them in this way, which shows not only how common it was, but that it clearly was practical enough for a wide range of locations.
The timing of lunar phases depends on the position of the moon relative to Earth, to find the time of the new moon locally, one can check how many hours from Universal Coordinated Time (or UTC) one’s location is. For example, Eastern Daylight Time is four hours behind Universal Time, so the new moon is at 2:06 a.m. Phoenix is seven hours behind UTC on Mountain Standard Time (Arizona does not observe daylight savings time), so the new moon there is at 11:06 p.m. Aug. 22. Sydney, Australia, is 10 hours ahead, so the new moon is at 4:06 p.m. Aug. 23.
Conjunction of the moon and Mars
On Aug. 26, there is a conjunction of the moon and Mars, which happens at 12:41 p.m. EDT, so observers west of Greenwich, England, will not be able to see the conjunction itself as it is in the daytime. But looking at the western sky from New York on the evening of Aug. 26, one will see the three-day-old moon to the left of Mars, but both will be close to the horizon. At sunset, which is at 7:37 EDT, the moon shall be simply seen as a skinny crescent within the southwest. Mars shall be to the best of the moon, although it will not be actually obvious till the sky will get a bit darker. Mars shall be about 11 degrees high at 8:05 p.m. EDT (when civil twilight ends) and the moon shall be about 9 degrees high. The moon units at 9:02 p.m. whereas Mars units at 9:07 p.m.
From places additional south, the moon and Mars shall be increased within the sky; observers in Miami, for instance, will see Mars about 19 degrees above the horizon by 8:09 p.m. EDT (the tip of civil twilight). The moon shall be at almost the identical altitude and to the left of Mars; even when Mars is tough to see, one can use the moon to find it.
From the Southern Hemisphere, the solar units earlier as it’s winter there; in Santiago, Chile, sundown is at 6:21 p.m. native time, and civil twilight ends at 6:46 p.m. At that time, Mars is totally 31 degrees above the western horizon and the skinny crescent moon will seem above and to the left of it; it can look as if the spherical a part of the crescent is pointing in direction of Mars. Mars units at 9:19 p.m. native time and the moon follows at 9:48 p.m.
To see the precise conjunction, one have to be east of the Greenwich time zone and southwards; for instance, in Cairo, the conjunction is Aug. 26 at 7:41 p.m. local time. The moon shall be 16 levels excessive within the west and Mars shall be about 19 levels excessive and to the best of the moon. However, sundown is at 7:24 p.m., and in the intervening time of conjunction, the sky will nonetheless be comparatively gentle (civil twilight doesn’t finish till 7:49 p.m.). Mars will not turn out to be readily seen till after that (although a superb problem is to see how quickly after sundown one can spot it).
Prospects are higher as one will get additional south; in Nairobi, sundown is at 6:36 p.m. on Aug. 26. The conjunction is at 7:41 p.m. native time, as in Cairo, however the moon and Mars are increased within the sky when it’s darkish sufficient to see them each, a perform of the sooner sundown. Civil twilight is at 6:57 p.m. and Mars is 30 degrees above the western horizon, with the moon to the left and just under it. This is simply excessive sufficient the place Mars is within the darker a part of the sky, making it seen in a method that it is not additional north. By the time of conjunction, Mars is as excessive as in Cairo (19 levels) however the sky is darker and each Mars and the moon are clearly seen among the many surrounding stars. The two will set by 8:57 p.m. and eight:55 p.m., respectively.
From Cape Town, the conjunction is at 6:41 p.m. local time, and provided that it’s within the Southern Hemisphere’s mid-latitudes, sundown is comparatively early, at 6:24 p.m. and civil twilight is at 6:49 p.m. A skinny crescent moon with the “horns” going through upwards shall be about 34 degrees high within the west when the conjunction occurs, with Mars to the best at 33 levels. Mars units first at 9:23 p.m. and the moon follows at 9:28 p.m.
Visible planets
On the night of the new moon itself (Aug. 23) from New York City, Mars will be low in the western sky after sunset (which is at 7:42 p.m. EDT). The Red Planet will solely be about 16 levels above the horizon at sundown, and by 8:10 p.m. (the tip of civil twilight), it is going to be solely 11 levels excessive, and nonetheless exhausting to see towards the sky. Mars units at 9:15 p.m.
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Just earlier than Mars units, Saturn rises at 8:55 p.m. EDT. By about 10:30 p.m., it is going to be 17 levels above the southeastern horizon. Given that the planet is within the constellation Pisces, which has few shiny stars, it is going to be straightforward to select. The planet crosses the meridian (or transits) at 2:50 a.m. on Aug 24 and units after dawn at 8:45 a.m. EDT. At transit, Saturn shall be about 47 levels excessive within the south.
As Saturn approaches transit, Jupiter rises at 2:29 a.m. Aug. 24. Jupiter is in Gemini, and to the left of Jupiter, one can see Castor and Pollux forming a triangle; Castor is the uppermost of the three. Venus rises at 3:29 a.m. and is the brightest object within the sky; it outshines stars and, as such, is simple to search out. By 4:30 a.m. Jupiter and Venus are respectively 20 levels and 10 levels above the japanese horizon.
The final planet to rise is Mercury, which reaches its highest altitude within the predawn sky on Aug. 21. On the morning of Aug. 24, the planet rises at 4:47 a.m. EDT. By 5:30 a.m., one can see Jupiter, Venus and Mercury forming a line within the sky — Mercury is at about 8 levels above the japanese horizon. It will nonetheless be exhausting to see, but when one begins wanting quickly after it rises, one can spot it; a line between Jupiter and Venus in direction of the horizon hits it, Jupiter shall be nearly instantly above Venus and barely to the best of it.
From the Southern Hemisphere, Mars is increased within the sky within the night, each as a result of the solar units earlier and the “upside-down” orientation of the sky. From Santiago, Chile, sundown on Aug. 23 is at 6:19 pm. native time and by 7 p.m., the sky is getting darkish; Mars will nonetheless be 29 levels excessive within the west-northwest; the planet units at 9:21 p.m. As within the northern latitudes, Saturn rises as Mars units, on this case at 8:31 p.m. The ringed planet transits at 2:36 a.m. Aug. 24. Jupiter rises at 4:44 a.m. within the east-northeast. Venus rises at 5:28 a.m. and Mercury at 6:23 a.m. Mercury is definitely positioned poorly for Southern Hemisphere sky watchers; despite the fact that dawn is not till 7:10 a.m. in Santiago, Mercury will solely get to an altitude of about 4 levels by the point civil twilight begins at 6:44 a.m., so it’s a troublesome observing goal. One can nonetheless use Jupiter and Venus to search out it, although, besides that the road they make is at a steeper angle (about 45 levels) and Jupiter is to the left of Venus as an alternative of the best as one faces east.
Constellations
In late August, Northern Hemisphere observers can see constellations of three seasons — traditional summer, autumn and winter. A dark sky location also offer the chance to see two different sides of the Milky Way.
By about 9 p.m. on Aug. 23, the sky is completely dark, and even from city locations it’s possible to see the constellations Lyra, Cygnus and Aquila, high in the southeast. Lyra is the highest, and the easiest to find because one needs only to look almost straight up to see Vega, its brightest star, about 85 degrees high at the latitude of New York City, Chicago, or Sacramento.
If one looks left (east) of Vega, about a third of the way towards the horizon, one sees Deneb, the alpha star of Cygnus the Swan. Just to the right of Deneb is a medium-bright star called Sadr (or Gamma Cygni) that is the center of the cross-shape that defines the bird, with one wing ending upwards at the star Delta Cygni and the other below at Epsilon Cygni (called Aljanah). Go to the right from Sadr and you end at the second-brightest star in Cygnus, called Albireo (Beta Cygni).
Further southwards, towards the horizon and to the right of Vega is Altair, the eye of Aquila, the Eagle. Vega, Deneb and Altair make a right triangle with the right angle at Deneb, this is called the Summer Triangle. From a darker sky site one can see the Milky Way, the misty band of light that shows the edge of our galaxy, and in the direction of Cygnus, one is looking towards the galactic east, about 90 degrees away from the center.
Draw a line through Deneb and Altair and you are going south, and just above the southern horizon, you hit the “teapot” shape of stars that is Sagittarius, the Archer. To the right of Sagittarius (westwards) is Scorpius the Scorpion, and you can recognize it because Antares, its brightest star, has a distinct red-orange hue. Antares will be about 17 degrees high. Here you are looking towards the galactic center. One can use Antares to spot the claws of Scorpius — three stars that form a roughly vertical line to the right (west) of Antares. From there, one can go back to Antares and trace a curved line of fainter stars that form the Scorpion’s back and tail.
Turn so that Antares is directly behind you and you are facing north. On the left side of the sky is the Big Dipper, part of the Great Bear, Ursa Major. The “bowl” of the dipper points upwards and to the right, and one can follow the two stars in the front of the bowl to Polaris, the Pole Star. The two stars will be on the bottom side of the bowl at that point in the evening. Using the handle of the Dipper one can “arc to Arcturus” by tracing a sweeping arc along the handle to the first bright star one encounters. Arcturus is the brightest star in Boötes, the Herdsman. Opposite the Big Dipper, about the same distance to the right (eastwards) of Polaris and about 30 degrees high (a third of the way from the horizon to the zenith), is Cassiopeia, a W-shaped group of stars, representing the legendary Queen of Ethiopia and the mother of Andromeda.
By midnight, the Summer Triangle has moved to the western side of the sky, and if one looks at Cassiopeia and turns right, towards the are above Saturn, one can see large square of stars called (rather unimaginatively) the Great Square. The three stars that will be on the right side of the square are the wings of Pegasus, the winged horse ridden by Perseus the Hero.
The left corner of the square, meanwhile, is the head of Andromeda, who, according to legend, Perseus was saving from the leviathan Cetus (also called the Whale). Cetus is just rising, and below Saturn and Pisces. The easiest way to find it (as it is not a bright constellation) is to look down from Saturn about halfway to the horizon, and one encounters Diphda, or Beta Ceti. Perseus, meanwhile, is below Cassiopeia; one can recognize it by looking towards the horizon from Cassiopeia and slightly to the right; the brightest star in Perseus, called Algenib, is about 29 degrees high. All of these constellations appear earlier in the evening as summer turns into fall.
By 3 a.m., one can look to the east and see Taurus the Bull, with the head of the bull marked by Aldebaran, a bright orange star that will be about 30 degrees high. Looking to the north of Taurus (to the left), one can see a bright star a bit higher than Aldebaran, at about 37 degrees, called Capella, in the constellation Auriga, the Charioteer. Look down from Aldebaran and close to the horizon is Betelgeuse, the bright reddish shoulder of Orion. All three constellations are associated with the winter sky. The Milky Way continues here through Auriga, Perseus, and Cassiopeia; the direction of Auriga is towards intergalactic space, exactly opposite the galactic center seen in Sagittarius.
From mid-southern latitudes by 8 p.m., one will see Crux, the Southern Cross, about 36 degrees high in the southwest. Above it is Alpha Centauri and the constellation Centaurus, the Centaur. (You can find Alpha Centauri by drawing a line up along the crossbar of the Cross).
Below the Cross and extending to the southern horizon are Carina, the Keel and Vela, the sail, two of the constellations that make up the ship Argo, which Jason sailed. Vela is a rough oval of 10 stars, though only eight are readily visible from more urban locations and by 8 p.m., some have set.
Antares is towards the southwest, but it is almost directly overhead, at an altitude of 75 degrees. The curve of the Scorpion’s back and tail leads to a point near the zenith, and a medium-bright star called Shaula (Lambda Scorpii). Directly below Shaula is another star in Scorpius called Gitab (Theta Scorpii) and as one continues to look towards the horizon (and approaches the Southern Celestial Pole), one encounters Atria, the brightest star in Triangulum Australe, the Southern Triangle. To the left of the Triangle is Pavo, the Peacock, though the constellation is fainter and hard to see from urban areas. If one keeps looking towards the horizon and eastwards (left) one encounters a bright star in the east-southeast, this is Fomalhaut, the alpha star of Piscis Austrinus, the Southern Fish. It is not only one of the brightest stars in the sky but a close neighbor of the solar system, only 25 light-years away.
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