Poster’s Note: The text for this month’s installment from Dee Sharples, “The Sky In August 2025,” is provided below. Those wishing to listen to the article can click on the audio link below.
August brings us the annual Perseid meteor shower. Active from July 17-August 24, it peaks in the early morning on Tuesday, August 12. However, a nearly full moon will brighten the sky and will greatly reduce the number of meteors to about 10 per hour this year. The Perseids are created by the dust and debris left behind by Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle as it passes through our solar system. When the Earth travels through this stream of particles, the dust and debris burn up in our atmosphere creating streaks of light, some very bright and visible even in a moonlit sky. The best time to view the meteors is in the early morning sky before the Sun rises.
Tuesday the 12th is also the day Venus and Jupiter meet for a close conjunction in the early morning sky. Before the Sun rises around 4:00 a.m., look east close to the horizon to see the two planets which will appear to be only 0.9° apart. (1.0° is the amount of sky blocked by your little finger held at arms length.) Venus will be easy to spot, shining brilliantly at magnitude -3.9 with Jupiter just above it but dimmer at magnitude -1.9.
The planets Saturn and Neptune have a close conjunction as well on Wednesday, August 6, around 4:00 a.m. Face south to see Saturn, looking like a fairly bright star, high above the horizon shining at magnitude 0.7. Neptune, much dimmer at magnitude 7.7, is not naked eye but can be easily spotted through binoculars just above Saturn.
At the beginning of August, look for the distinctive constellation Sagittarius the Archer low near the horizon due south at 11:00 p.m. By the 15th of the month, it will be in the same location but an hour earlier at 10:00 p.m. An asterism (group of stars) which is part of the Sagittarius constellation resembles a teapot with its handle on the left and its spout tipped to the right. The countless stars in our Milky Way galaxy appear like steam rising from the spout. You’re looking toward the center of our galaxy and your best view will be from a dark sky site.
Summer offers us comfortable nights and mornings to observe our beautiful universe!
