WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.640 [upbeat music] 2 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:04.470 What's Up for August? 3 00:00:04.470 --> 00:00:06.900 Grab your binoculars for planet viewing, 4 00:00:06.900 --> 00:00:08.730 the outlook for the Perseids, 5 00:00:08.730 --> 00:00:11.850 and flying with Cygnus the swan. 6 00:00:11.850 --> 00:00:13.440 The morning planet parade 7 00:00:13.440 --> 00:00:15.090 we've been enjoying the past few months 8 00:00:15.090 --> 00:00:16.800 comes to an end in August, 9 00:00:16.800 --> 00:00:18.990 with Venus and Saturn making their exits 10 00:00:18.990 --> 00:00:21.240 on opposite sides of the sky. 11 00:00:21.240 --> 00:00:23.070 But that still leaves Mars and Jupiter 12 00:00:23.070 --> 00:00:25.290 high overhead to enjoy. 13 00:00:25.290 --> 00:00:27.930 line:15% In fact, August begins with a close conjunction 14 00:00:27.930 --> 00:00:32.040 line:15% of the Red Planet and distant ice giant planet Uranus. 15 00:00:32.040 --> 00:00:33.630 Uranus can be difficult to find 16 00:00:33.630 --> 00:00:35.010 without a self-guided telescope, 17 00:00:35.010 --> 00:00:36.900 but it's an easy object for binoculars 18 00:00:36.900 --> 00:00:38.550 if you know where to look. 19 00:00:38.550 --> 00:00:42.630 And on the 1st, you'll find the tiny, bluish disc of Uranus 20 00:00:42.630 --> 00:00:45.240 just northwest of Mars in the morning sky. 21 00:00:45.240 --> 00:00:47.190 They'll easily fit within the same field of view 22 00:00:47.190 --> 00:00:48.810 through binoculars. 23 00:00:48.810 --> 00:00:50.670 Moving on to the morning of the 15th, 24 00:00:50.670 --> 00:00:53.910 you'll find the Moon only a finger's width from Jupiter. 25 00:00:53.910 --> 00:00:55.140 Like Mars and Uranus, 26 00:00:55.140 --> 00:00:57.330 they'll make a great pairing through binoculars, 27 00:00:57.330 --> 00:00:59.010 and you'll also likely catch a glimpse 28 00:00:59.010 --> 00:01:01.260 of Jupiter's four largest moons. 29 00:01:01.260 --> 00:01:03.030 The Moon then works its way eastward, 30 00:01:03.030 --> 00:01:05.670 to join Mars on August 19th. 31 00:01:05.670 --> 00:01:07.770 This is another nice pairing for binoculars, 32 00:01:07.770 --> 00:01:10.650 plus you'll find the pair super close to the Pleiades. 33 00:01:10.650 --> 00:01:13.860 You may even be able to fit them all into the same view. 34 00:01:13.860 --> 00:01:15.450 Moving to the evening sky, 35 00:01:15.450 --> 00:01:18.030 Saturn is transitioning from a late night 36 00:01:18.030 --> 00:01:21.480 and early morning object to an all-night sight. 37 00:01:21.480 --> 00:01:23.760 line:15% It's rising as night falls in August. 38 00:01:23.760 --> 00:01:25.770 line:15% Look low in the east around 9:00 PM 39 00:01:25.770 --> 00:01:29.160 line:15% to find it as a steady, yellowish point of light. 40 00:01:29.160 --> 00:01:31.680 line:15% You'll find that the Ringed Planet rises a bit earlier 41 00:01:31.680 --> 00:01:33.720 line:15% each night over the course of the month. 42 00:01:33.720 --> 00:01:35.490 Saturn's at opposition this month, 43 00:01:35.490 --> 00:01:37.710 meaning it's directly on the opposite side 44 00:01:37.710 --> 00:01:39.390 of Earth from the Sun. 45 00:01:39.390 --> 00:01:41.040 line:15% It's around this time when the Ringed Planet 46 00:01:41.040 --> 00:01:43.800 line:15% appears its biggest and brightest for the year. 47 00:01:43.800 --> 00:01:46.050 By the end of the month you'll start to notice Jupiter 48 00:01:46.050 --> 00:01:48.990 rising around 9:00 PM to join Saturn. 49 00:01:48.990 --> 00:01:51.270 line:15% This means Jupiter will be pulling double duty 50 00:01:51.270 --> 00:01:54.210 as an early evening object, appearing in the eastern sky, 51 00:01:54.210 --> 00:01:56.581 and an early morning one, appearing in the west. 52 00:01:56.581 --> 00:01:57.720 [meteor whooshes] 53 00:01:57.720 --> 00:01:59.820 line:15% The Perseid meteors are an annual event 54 00:01:59.820 --> 00:02:02.310 line:15% many of us skywatchers look forward to, 55 00:02:02.310 --> 00:02:03.420 line:15% as they often produce 56 00:02:03.420 --> 00:02:06.240 line:15% lots of shooting stars for us to enjoy. 57 00:02:06.240 --> 00:02:08.730 Unfortunately, this year all but the brightest Perseids 58 00:02:08.730 --> 00:02:10.650 will be washed out by a full moon 59 00:02:10.650 --> 00:02:12.930 on the peak night of August 12th. 60 00:02:12.930 --> 00:02:14.670 So, this is probably not the year 61 00:02:14.670 --> 00:02:17.310 to make a special trip in order to see the Perseids, 62 00:02:17.310 --> 00:02:19.170 but, if you find yourself outside 63 00:02:19.170 --> 00:02:21.360 between midnight and dawn on August 13th, 64 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:23.220 don't forget to look up anyway. 65 00:02:23.220 --> 00:02:24.053 Because you never know, 66 00:02:24.053 --> 00:02:26.370 you might just catch one of the bright Perseid meteors 67 00:02:26.370 --> 00:02:28.620 line:15% that defies the glare of the Moon. 68 00:02:28.620 --> 00:02:31.020 And don't forget the occasional early Perseid 69 00:02:31.020 --> 00:02:34.061 line:15% can streak across the sky as much as a week beforehand. 70 00:02:34.061 --> 00:02:35.430 [meteor whooshes] 71 00:02:35.430 --> 00:02:38.730 line:15% You'll find the constellation Cygnus, the swan, 72 00:02:38.730 --> 00:02:42.510 flying high in the eastern sky after dark in August. 73 00:02:42.510 --> 00:02:46.020 Cygnus has an overall shape like a T or cross, 74 00:02:46.020 --> 00:02:47.340 and contains a star pattern 75 00:02:47.340 --> 00:02:49.680 sometimes called "the Northern Cross." 76 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:52.590 Cygnus is anchored by its brightest star, Deneb, 77 00:02:52.590 --> 00:02:55.080 which represents the swan's tail. 78 00:02:55.080 --> 00:02:56.370 Deneb is the northernmost 79 00:02:56.370 --> 00:02:58.440 of the three stars in the Summer Triangle, 80 00:02:58.440 --> 00:03:01.230 and it's visible even in bright city skies. 81 00:03:01.230 --> 00:03:02.910 On the other end of Cygnus from Deneb 82 00:03:02.910 --> 00:03:04.800 is double star Albireo, 83 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:06.450 which is a stargazing favorite, 84 00:03:06.450 --> 00:03:08.940 as it shows beautiful blue and gold colors 85 00:03:08.940 --> 00:03:11.280 even through the most modest telescope. 86 00:03:11.280 --> 00:03:14.010 Now, Cygnus lies right along the plane of the Milky Way, 87 00:03:14.010 --> 00:03:17.790 so it's dense with glittering stars and dark dust clouds, 88 00:03:17.790 --> 00:03:20.010 line:15% with lots of interest for telescope observers 89 00:03:20.010 --> 00:03:22.020 line:15% and astrophotographers to enjoy, 90 00:03:22.020 --> 00:03:25.020 line:15% including the North America Nebula, the Veil Nebula, 91 00:03:25.020 --> 00:03:27.360 line:15% and the Blinking Planetary Nebula. 92 00:03:27.360 --> 00:03:31.680 line:15% It also includes the open star clusters M29 and M39, 93 00:03:31.680 --> 00:03:34.050 line:15% which are visible with binoculars. 94 00:03:34.050 --> 00:03:36.630 However you're observing the sky where you live, 95 00:03:36.630 --> 00:03:40.410 August is a great time to discover the constellation Cygnus, 96 00:03:40.410 --> 00:03:42.630 the graceful swan soaring across 97 00:03:42.630 --> 00:03:44.550 the dusty lanes of the Milky Way. 98 00:03:44.550 --> 00:03:46.290 [meteor whooshes] 99 00:03:46.290 --> 00:03:48.440 Here are the phases of the Moon for August. 100 00:03:50.790 --> 00:03:52.980 Stay up to date with all of NASA's missions 101 00:03:52.980 --> 00:03:56.463 to explore the solar system and beyond at nasa.gov. 102 00:03:57.420 --> 00:04:00.090 I'm Preston Dyches from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 103 00:04:00.090 --> 00:04:01.890 and that's What's Up for this month.