AstroCal – August 2025
By mid-August, we will be halfway between the Summer Solstice and Autumnal Equinox. The hours of the day will be decreasing toward the 12 hours of daylight / 12 hours of darkness that marks the Equinox (translated as ‘Equal Night’). On the plus side, the land and water of the northern hemisphere have now absorbed a significant amount of solar energy and that means we have entered the period of prime recreation along the south shore of Lake Superior.
Before we look at this month’s astronomical highlights, I found an interesting item recently from EarthSkyNews under the title “Star survives black hole, returns for another round”: “In 2022, astronomers spotted a bright flare at the center of a galaxy some 408 million light years away. Labeled AT 2022dbl, it was what’s known as a tidal disruption event, where a star passes too close to a massive black hole, which rips it to shreds. These incredibly energetic events are nothing new to astronomers. But a surprise came two years later, when researchers spotted a nearly identical flare in exactly the same location. Having confirmed it wasn’t just a similar star suffering the same fate, the astronomers said last week that this was the first confirmed case of a star surviving a tidal disruption event and returning to experience another.” So much for those who say ‘there is nothing new to learn about the universe’. Incidentally, at 408 million light years distance, this means the event they observed in 2022 took place 408 million years ago and the light recording the event took that long to reach us.
We will start our August report noting the annual Perseids Meteor Shower will peak on August 12-13, 2025. The Full Moon falling on August 9 may make observing the fainter meteors more difficult, but with the Perseid’s radiation point located in the northeast, this should help. To confirm if a sighting is a Perseids meteor, trace its path from the end toward where it was first observed. If the path points at the constellation Perseus, the Hero, (the famed slayer of the snake-haired Gorgon, Medusa), then it is from that swarm.
Other Lunar events for the month include the First Quarter Moon (Aug 1), the Third Quarter Moon (Aug 16), and the New Moon of the next cycle on Aug 23. This third New Moon of a season of four new moons is also known as a ‘Black Moon’. The first views of the Very Young Crescent Moon can be seen low in the western sky just after sunset on August 25. Remember to look for Earthshine (also known as Da Vinci Glow) on the nights before and after a New Moon. If the conditions are right, one can see the entire disk of the Moon dimly illuminated in a bluish-gray glow that appears adjacent to the brightly lit Crescent Moon. This glow is produced by light from a fully illuminated Earth reflecting off the lunar surface. According to Space.com, this event is sometimes described as, “The old Moon in the new Moon’s arms.” (Earthshine description courtesy of Space.com).
On August 10, look for six planets to appear in the same sky – four of which can be seen without any fancy gear. Mercury (mag +1.5 to -0.3 from beginning to end of the month), Venus (mag -4.0), Jupiter (mag -1.9), Saturn (mag +0.4), Uranus (mag +5.7) and Neptune (mag +7.8) will all be above the horizon at the same time, but there is a small catch. You will have to view them just before sunrise. Mars will not join the parade this month as it will rise and set with the Sun all month.
Venus and Jupiter will be the two easiest planets to observe as they will be above the eastern horizon between 4:00 and 5:00 a.m. local time. As the month wears on, Jupiter will begin to catch up with Venus as the gap between them closes. Their conjunction, or closest approach, will take place on August 13/14. Uranus will be a little trickier to see if you look high up in the east, between the Hyades star cluster and the Pleiades star cluster.
Saturn and Neptune will be close together in the south with Neptune being above Saturn. Look for them both to the left of the Circlet star pattern in the constellation of Pisces, the Fish.
Neptune will be faint enough to require a telescope this month*. Mercury will not be visible yet as it reached inferior conjunction on the first of the month. In other words, Mercury is located between the Earth and the Sun and therefore lost in the Sun’s glare. Look for it to become visible in the morning sky close to the horizon around the 18th and 19th of August.
*REMEMBER – use caution when using binoculars or telescopes just before sunrise – the retina of your eye can be PERMANENTLY DAMAGED if you accidentally view the
Sun through binoculars or your telescoper!
Compiled by Ken Raisanen of WOAS-FM 91.5 – information provided by Abrams Planetarium Sky Calendar, Michigan State University. More information and subscription information can be found on their website at http://abramsplanetarium.org/skycalendar/. Yearly subscriptions cost $12 and can be started anytime. Comments and questions can be emailed to kraisanen@oasd.k12.mi.us
Top Piece Video: Seals & Croft from The Old Grey Whistle Test on BBC in 1975