Monday, July 06, 2026
July Skies 2026, and astrophiz podcast
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| Eastern horizon on the morning of Saturday, July 4 as seen from Adelaide at 5:54 ACST (90 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen).Mars is closest to Uranus and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters. The inset shows the binocular view of Mars, Uranus and the Pleiades at this time. Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise). | Eastern horizon on the morning of Wednesday, July 8 as seen from Adelaide at 5:54 ACST (90 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen). Saturn and Mars form a long line in the twilight. Saturn is close to the waning Moon. Saturn is now high enough for telescopic observation, and its rings are widening. Mars is in between Pleiades and Hyades and forms a second eye for Taurus the Bull with Aldebaran.The inset shows the telescopic view of Saturn at this time. Similar views will be seen from the r est of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise). |
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| Western sky on the evening of Thursday, July 9 as seen from Adelaide at 18:18 ACST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). Jupiter is coming close to the horizon. Venus is closest to the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis). Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset). | Western sky on the evening of Friday, July 17 as seen from Adelaide at 18:22 ACST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). Venus, the thin crescent Moon and the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis) form a line. Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset). |
| July | |
| 04 July 2026 | Mars close to Uranus (0.5°) between Pleiades and Hyades, Binocular or Telescope. |
| 07 July 2026 | Earth at aphelion |
| 09 July | Venus and the bright star Regulus close. |
| 12 July 2026 | Mars near bright red star Aldebaran (5° apart) |
| 17 July 2026 | Crescent Moon in between Regulus and Venus in the evening twilight |
| 21 July 2026 | Moon near Spica |
| 25 July | Moon near Antares, closest in morning sky |
| 29-30 July 2026 | Southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower in morning |
| 30 July 2026 | Full Moon |
Mercury is still readily visible below Jupiter at nautical twilight at the beginning of the week. By the end of the week it is lost in the twilight and will return to the morning skies at the end of the month.
Venus climbs higher in the evening sky in spends July passing through Leo. On the 9th and 10th, it is just 1° from Leo’s brightest star, 1st magnitude Regulus (Alpha Leonis). On the 17th, Regulus is now 8° below the planet, with a 3-day-old waxing crescent Moon halfway between.
Jupiter is visible in the early evening, setting just after Nautical twilight at the beginning of the month. It is low above the northwestern horizon in the twilight. On the 15th Jupiter and the thin crescent moon are visible together low above the horizon at civil twilight. Jupiter is lost in the twilight glow after this.
Morning sky:
Saturn enters the evening skies in July. in Pisces, rises around 11:30 pm mid‑month in the eastern morning sky. On the 6th, the planet is at the point in its orbit known as its western quadrature, where the Sun‑Earth‑Saturn angle is 90° On the 8th, Saturn is about 7° from the last quarter Moon. The Ringed Planet’s apparent path against the star field reverses on the 28th as the world begins its retrograde track ahead of its September opposition.
Moon:
Stars:
| July 8 | Last Quarter Moon (ideal for star gazing) |
| July13 | Moon at apogee |
| July14 | New Moon (also ideal for star gazing) |
| July 21 | First Quarter Moon |
| July 26 | Apogee Moon |
| July 30 | Full Moon |
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| South-Eastern sky as seen from Adelaide at 18:51 ACST on July 15 (90 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). Scorpius is high in the sky. The inset shows the binocular view of the "sting" in the scorpions tail, with Ptolemy’s cluster. Similar views will been seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (90 minutes after sunset) | Southern sky as seen from Adelaide at 18:51 ACST on July 15 (90 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). The Southern Cross is at its highest. The inset shows the binocular view of the the Southern Pleiades around Theta θ Carina and the eta Carina nebula. Similar views will been seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (90 minutes after sunset) |
Scorpius the scorpion, is well above the eastern horizon in the east when the sky is fully dark. It is almost galaxy season, with Sagittarius, and the heart of the Milky way, rising. By around 11 pm local time, Scorpius lies across the Zenth with Sagittarius and the heart of the galaxy beneath.
The scorpion is an excellent binocular hunting ground now. Where the “sting of the tail begins to around is a star grouping dominated by zeta 1 and 2 Scorpii of the called the false comet, below the end of the sting is Ptolemy’s cluster and the Butterfly cluster, heading on westward towards the lid of the Teapot of Sagittarius in the Triffid nebula and then below that the Globular cluster M22.
At around astronomical twilight (090 minutes after sunset when the sky is fully dark) the Southern Cross will almost be at its highest due south. To the right and a bit below alpha Crucis , almost half-way between the Southern cross and the false cross is theta carina, the brightest star in the Southern Pleiades. Just above that is the broad fuzzy patch that is the Carina Nebula, with variable star eta Carina (too dim to see) across this nebulosity is a dark band, the keyhole nebula best seen with binoculars or a small telescope.
The position of the Southern Cross and the pointers makes Omega Centauri, a magnificent globular cluster, easy to find in the evening as it forms the apex of a triangle with the Beta Crucis and Beta Centauri forming the base.
Meteors: Southern delta Aquariids:
The Southern Delta-Aquarids meteor shower runs from 12 July to 23rd August, peaking on Sunday July the 30th. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. The ZHR for Southern Delta Aquariids is 25 meteors per hour.
In practice, you will never see these many meteors as the radiant will be some distance below the zenith. Also, unless you are out deep in the countryside, the darkness will be less than ideal. This shower is fairly faint, with the highest rate of around a meteor every 4-5 minutes.
Sadly, this year the full Moon is on the 30th, so there will be lots of moonlight interference. This shower is best seen from best seen from midnight to 3 am.
Labels: Astrophiz, Monthly sky
Friday, July 03, 2026
GEOMAGNETIC WARNING July 3-4
If storms eventuate, visible aurora may be seen in Tasmania southern parts of Victoria, and possibly southern South Australia, during local night hours. In the early evening bright Venus in the east will brighten your aurora hunting.
The Moon is approaching Last Quarter and will not interfere too much. In the early morning Mars and Uranus are at their closest together in binoculars on the 4th and 5th and the pair are also midway between the Pleiades and Hyades clusters. Keep an eye out and be patient, as the magnetic polarity of the wind fluctuates significantly and aurora may come and go.
Dark sky sites have the best chance of seeing anything, and always allow around 5 minutes for your eyes to become dark adapted.
As always look to the south for shifting red/green glows, mostly green at the moment.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky. https://www.skippysky.com.au/Australia/index.html
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
_____________________________________________________________
INCREASED GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY EXPECTED
DUE TO CORONAL MASS EJECTION
FROM 03-04 JULY 2026
_____________________________________________________________
GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY FORECAST
03 Jul: G2
04 Jul: G0-G1
====================================================
Labels: aurora
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Thursday July 2 to Thursday July 9
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 8. On July 7 Earth is at aphelion. In the morning Saturn and Mars form a long line. Saturn is close to the Moon on the 8th. Mars and Uranus are at their closest together in binoculars on the 4th and 5th and the pair are also midway between the Pleiades and Hyades clusters. In the evening, Venus and Jupiter form a line. On the 9th Venus is just 1° from Leo’s brightest star, Regulus.
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 8. On July 7 Earth is at aphelion, when it is furthest from the Sun.
Mars is closest to Uranus and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters.
The inset shows the binocular view of Mars, Uranus and the Pleiades at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise).
Saturn and Mars form a long line in the twilight. Saturn is close to the waning Moon. Saturn is now high enough for telescopic observation, and its rings are widening.
Mars is in between Pleiades and Hyades and forms a second eye for Taurus the Bull with Aldebaran.
The inset shows the telescopic view of Saturn at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise).
Jupiter is coming close to the horizon. Venus is closest to the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis).
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is now visible when the sky is fully dark. Venus is drawing away Jupiter in the evening sky. Venus is close to the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis).
Mars is climbing in the twilight. Mars is closest to Uranus on the 4th and 5th and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters.
Jupiter is low above the horizon, setting around astronomical twilight.
Saturn is climbing higher in the morning sky above Mars. Saturn is near to the waning Moon.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, June 22, 2026
Thursday June 25 to Thursday July 2
The Full Moon is Tuesday June 30. In the morning Saturn and Mars form a long line. Mars and Uranus are close together in binoculars and the pair are also midway between the Pleiades and Hyades clusters. In the evening, Venus Jupiter and Mercury form a line. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight. On June 28 the Moon occults the bright star Antares (East coast only early morning).
The Full Moon is Tuesday June 30. The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the earth, on June 28.
Saturn and Mars form a long line in the twilight. Saturn is now high enough for telescopic observation, and its rings are widening.
The inset shows the telescopic view of Saturn at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise).
Mars is close to Uranus ahead of the close apposition of the pair next week and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters.
The inset shows the binocular view of Mars, Uranus and the Pleiades at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise).
Mercury and Jupiter are at their closest, with Venus above. Venus is coming closer to the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis).
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
Venus is coming closer to the bright star Regulus. Jupiter and Mercury are sinking towards the horizon.
The inset is the telescopic view of Venus at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
The western sky at 02:22 AEST Sunday, June 28, as seen from Canberra. The Moon is about to occult the bright star Antares.
The inset shows the telescopic view at the time. (click to embiggen). Click to embiggen.
for more details and times from other cities, see my Antares occultation page.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time
Mercury starts lowering in the evening twilight, below Jupiter and Venus. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight.
Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is now visible when the sky is fully dark. Venus is drawing away Jupiter in the evening sky. Venus is coming closer to the bright star Regulus (Alpha Leonis).
Mars is climbing in the twilight. Mars is close to Uranus ahead of the close apposition of the pair next week and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters.
Jupiter is low above the horizon, setting around astronomical twilight. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight.
Saturn is climbing higher in the morning sky above Mars.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Occultation of Antares 28 June, 2026
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| The western sky at 02:22 AEST Sunday, June 28, as seen from Canberra. The Moon is about to occult the bright star Antares. The inset shows the telescopic view at the time. (click to embiggen). Click to embiggen | The western sky at 02:27 AEST Sunday, June 28, as seen from Sydney. The Moon is about to occult the bright star Antares. The inset shows the telescopic view at the time. (click to embiggen). Click to embiggen | The western sky at 02:12 AEST Sunday, June 28, as seen from Melbourne. The moon is about to occult the bright star Antares. The inset shows the telescopic view at the time. (click to embiggen). Click to embiggen |
on Sunday June 28 there is an early morning occultation best seen from the east coast south of the Gold Coast (which sees a graze). Everywhere else in Australia sees a close approach. The Moon is two days off full and sufficiently high in the sky for easy binocular/telescope observation, although telescope is best.
| Place | Disappears dark Limb | Reappears Bright Limb |
| Adelaide ACST | - | - |
| Brisbane AEST | - | - |
| Canberra AEST | 02:22 | 03:01 |
| Darwin ACST | - | - |
| Hobart AEST | 01:58 | 03:01 |
| Melbourne AEDST | 02:12 | 02:57 |
| Perth AWST | - | - |
| Sydney AEST | 02:27 | 03:03 |
Labels: Antares, binocular, Moon, Occultation, telescope
Saturday, June 20, 2026
Comets, Flat earth and Watching the Moon and planets move in a single night
To be read in conjunction with the "Tangent" section of the astrophiz podcast #235
https://soundcloud.com/astrophiz/astrophiz-235-june-2026-sky-guide
There is a video going around on that wretched hive of villainy and scum called twitter labelled “Comets are not what we’ve been told”. It shows some very nice time lapses of bright comets with the caption ‘Watch how it moves in lockstep with the stars” …. And that’s it. That’s the argument.
Now, many people think because bright comets with the luminous tails look “swooshy” they must move perceptibly, like meteors. So perhaps the the lack of perceptible movement meant the comets were something else due to their naive expectations .... hence the earth is flat for .. reasons. But comets are exactly what we have been told (and the earth is not flat).
In a single night, when viewed from afar, most comets will not seem to move against the background stars, especially as the time window before they set is short. But through a telescope (or telescopic lens) you can see them move a bit. For C/2024 G3 and C/2025 R3 I had a roughly 20 minute window for imaging, so I wasn’t going to see much motion, but for C/20025 R3 I could compare my images with those by other astrophotographers in the Southern Hemisphere, and see for example, images taken a few hours previous in New Zealand showed the comet had move compared to my images.
And night after night they are against different stars as the follow their orbit. Comet C/2025 R3 was particularly lovely, not bright but drifting past the sword of Orion’s belt each night was memorable.
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| Comet C/2025R3 and Orion on the 10th May. Can't really see the tail against the light pollution. My image, long exposure (left) vs stellarium. | Comet C/2025R3 and Orion on the 10th May as simulated in stellarium.. Compare with my image, long exposure on the right. |
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| Comet C/2025R3 and Orion on the 11th May. Sort of got a stubby tail against the light pollution. My image, long exposure (left) vs stellarium. | Comet C/2025R3 and Orion on the 11th May as simulated in stellarium.. Compare with my image, long exposure on the right. |
Comet C/2025 R3, at the time it was crossing Orion’s belt, was moving around 1 degree every 24 hours, slow compared to the moon, which moves ~13.2 degrees every 24 hours, but not too different from the movement Venus, which moves on Average ~1.2 degrees per day and fleet Mercury which moves on average ~1.3833 degrees per day (0.5 degrees is roughly the diameter of the moon, which moves approximately one lunar diameter per hour). Mars moves ~ 0.5242 degrees per day and Jupiter, Saturn and the rest much less. This is why Jupiter and Saturn seem to stay in roughly the same place night after night. This is complicated by retrograde motion, where earth overtakes the planets in their orbits.
Mercury and Venus have a narrow window before they set to see them move in a single night. On the 20th and 21st you have about a 2 hour window to see Venus move against the background stars of the Beehive cluster, you do need a flat level horizon for this. (of course, day to day they move quite a bit with close approaches to other planets and stars over a matter of days).
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| Western sky on the evening of Saturday, June 20 as seen from Adelaide
at 18:11 ACST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). Venus is at its closest to the Beehive Cluster (M44). | Binocular view Venus and the Beehive at 18:11 ACST | Binocular view Venus and the Beehive at 19:41 ACST. Venus has slightly, but perceptibly moved against the stars of the Beehive. |
We tend not to notice the relatively rapid movement on the Moon during the night, not may people are out looking at the sky for hours on end. Only when the moon is close to a very bright star do we sometime take notice.
On the 23rd you can follow the waxing Moon as it comes closer to the bright star Spica, in binoculars you will be able to see it come close to the star 49 Virginis over the span of a few hours. Of course on the 28th, in the early Morning you can watch the moon occult (or graze) Antares.
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| The Moon at the evening of Tuesday, June 21 as seen from Adelaide at 18:12 ACST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). The Moon is close to the bright star Spica | The Moon as seen through binoculars at 18:12 ACST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen). The Moon is near the star 49 Virginis | The Moon as seen through binoculars at 22:00 ACST. The Moon is now beside the star 49 Virginis and visibly closer to Spica. |
Labels: Astrophiz, comet, Moon.
Monday, June 15, 2026
Thursday June 18 to Thursday June 25
The First Quarter Moon is Monday June 22. The "Lunar X" can be seen at this time. Earth is at solstice on the 21st. In the morning Saturn and Mars form a line. In the evening, on the 18th, the Moon is close to Venus and the Beehive cluster. On the 20th, Venus and the Beehive are at their closest. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight.
The First Quarter Moon is Monday June 22. The "Lunar X" can be seen at this time. Earth is at solstice, when the days are shortest, on the 21st.
Saturn and Mars form a long line in the twilight. Saturn is now high enough for telescopic observation, and its rings are widening.
The inset shows the telescopic view of Saturn at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise).
Venus, Jupiter and Mercury form a line with the waxing Moon.
Venus is close to the waxing Moon and the inset shows the telescopic view of Venus at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
Venus is at its closest to the Beehive Cluster (M44). The inset is the binocular view of Venus and the Beehive.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
The First Quarter Moon is high above the western horizon and the lunar "X" and "V" are easily seen in a small telescope.
the inset shows the telescopic view at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the times indicated below:
| Date | UT | AEST | ACST | AWST |
| June 22 | 09:41 | 20:41 | 20:11 | 17:41 (WA: X visible at twilight better when sky is full dark) |
Mercury and Jupiter are at their closest, with Venus above. Venus is coming closer to the Bright Star Regulus.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
Mercury climbs higher in the evening twilight, below Venus and Jupiter. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight.
Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is now visible when the sky is fully dark. Venus is drawing away Jupiter in the evening sky. 18th, the Moon is close to Venus and the Beehive cluster. On the 20th, Venus and the Beehive are at their closest.
Mars is climbing in the twilight.
Jupiter is low above the horizon, setting in the early evening. On the 25th Mercury and Jupiter are close in the twilight.
Saturn is climbing in the twilight above Mars.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Friday, June 12, 2026
GEOMAGNETIC WARNING June 12-14
The Earth is expected to become influenced by a recurrent coronal hole on June 12 (Universal time, probably morning of the 13th in Australia) to induce G1 geomagnetic activity with a chance of G2.
A CME launched on 11 June is expected to arrive with a glancing blow early on UT day 13 June to induce G2 geomagnetic conditions. Residual disturbances are likely to continue into 14 June, giving G1 geomagnetic conditions with a chance for G2 periods on this day.
If storms eventuate, visible aurora may be seen in Tasmania southern parts of Victoria, and possibly southern South Australia, Western Australia and NSW during local night hours. In the early evening the planetary massing of Mercury, Jupiter and Venus in the east will add spice to your aurora hunting.
The Moon is approaching New. In the early morning it is close to Mars on the 13th,It will not interfere too seeing aurora in the early morning. Keep an eye out and be patient, as the magnetic polarity of the wind fluctuates significantly and aurora may come and go.
Dark sky sites have the best chance of seeing anything, and always allow around 5 minutes for your eyes to become dark adapted.
As always look to the south for shifting red/green glows, mostly green at the moment.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky. https://www.skippysky.com.au/Australia/index.html
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
_____________________________________________________________
INCREASED GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY EXPECTED
DUE TO CORONAL HOLE HIGH SPEED WIND STREAM
FROM 12-14 JUNE 2026
_____________________________________________________________
GEOMAGNETIC ACTIVITY FORECAST
12 Jun: G1, chance G2
13 Jun: G2
14 Jun: G1, chance G2
Labels: aurora
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