The July Sky

.....The was a bit of a blip posting this, so here is the correct version.

.....Below is shown an image of the night sky as it is at ten PM in early July (corresponding to nine PM in mid-July, and eight PM by late July.  We can now start to see how the sky changes over time by comparing the sky in July with the sky in June (also shown below).

 

.....As before, I have included constellations that have already been discussed (Boötes, Ursa Major, Libra, Ursa Minor, and the asterism of the Summer Triangle) as well as some constellations that will be coming soon, such as Ophuichus and Serpens, Scorpius, Sagittarius, Lyra, Aquila, and Cygnus).  Note that on the maps below, the points of the compass are shown as on the maps above.  To see these constellations, take your computer (or print out the map, totally your choice) and turn it so that the labeled north (south, east, west, whatever) is at the bottom of the map when you are looking north (south, east, west, whatever.

.....The summer sky can illustrate a couple of different points.  The map below shows all stars theoretically visible, all the way down to sixth magnitude.  There are two reasons why I don't use this map for my basic sky map; sadly, the vast majority of people don't get to see the sky like this (I did, last week, and I'll be writing about that tomorrow), and if you did see the sky like this, it might well overwhelm even a fairly experienced suburban skywatcher.  Also on the map below, you might note that there are more stars in the eastern sky than the western sky, and that there almost seems to be a band going from the south to the northeast.  This is the summer Milky Way with the center of our galaxy between Scorpius and Sagittarius (and then another 30,000 light years), so hopefully this makes sense.

.....This map assumes that the reader can see stars of fifth magnitude or brighter.  This is still wildly optimistic for most people, but as you will see, I kind of need to go to this level in order for the patterns as generally associated with the constellations to make any sense.

 .....This map shows the sky to a limiting magnitude of fourth magnitude (remember that the lower the number, the brighter the star).  Holes start to appear in the constellation patterns.

 .....If the sky is cloudy or bright enough that nothing fainter than third magnitude can be seen, then only the larger patterns (such as the Summer Triangle) can be seen.

 .....Now that only second magnitude stars or brighter are shown, then only the brightest stars appear, but it is still enough to allow you to orient yourself.

.....If first magnitude stars are visible, one might wish to go back inside and expand your mind or hang out with loved ones, or, at this point, just watch some TV.

.....Finally, it could be completely cloudy: