August is the month that darkness returns. For the sky to be completely dark, the Sun must get at least 18 degrees below the horizon. On 1st August this happens at 00:46 and lasts until 02:24, giving 1 hour 42 mins of darkness. By the end of August this has stretched to 5 hours 48 mins. August is also famous for the Perseid meteor shower which you can read more about below. You may still spot noctilucent clouds. They can be seen some evenings shining in the north after sunset and before sunrise but it is at the end of the season for them. I have another post about noctilucent clouds and the link is below:
How to see Noctilucent clouds
Sun and Moon
| Date | Sunrise (Irish Time) | Sunset (Irish Time) |
|---|---|---|
| 01/08/2022 | 05:41 | 21:20 |
| 15/08/2022 | 06:05 | 20:52 |
| 31/08/2022 | 06:33 | 20:16 |
| Moon Phase | Date |
|---|---|
| First quarter | 5/08/2022 |
| Full Moon | 12/08/2022 |
| Third Quarter | 19/08/2022 |
| New Moon | 27/08/2022 |
Planets
Mercury
Mercury sets very soon after the Sun and will be very hard to see this month.
Venus
Venus is an morning planet in August. It will be very bright in the east roughly about 90 mins before Sunrise. Look for the thin crescent moon nearby on 25th.
Mars
Mars rises shortly after midnight, it will be visible in the south east for the rest of the night. Mars will move towards Aldebaran and the Pleiades finishing the month positioned between the two of them.
Jupiter
Jupiter is visible this month in east/ south. It will already be above the horizon as the sky darkens and is very bright. It will be unmistakable as it will far outshine anything else in that area. If you have a small telescope or even binoculars, you should be able to pick out some of the moons that are orbiting the planet. The four that will be visible in a small telescope are Europa, Ganymede, Calisto and Io. They will look like tiny stars in a line each side of the planet. They will appear to change position during the night. If you don’t see all of them that means one of them is either in front of the planet or behind it.
Saturn
Saturn is visible in the south too. It is also above the horizon before darkness falls. It will be a lot dimmer than Jupiter but should still stand out amongst the other stars in the area. Look for it, west of Jupiter, in the south/ south west. If you have a small telescope, you should be able to see the rings which is a particularly nice sight.
Perseid Meteor Shower
The Perseid meteor shower peak happens in early August each year. It is quite a reliable shower. Normally, if the clouds clear, the weather is warm enough so that you can go outside and watch them in relative comfort. This year the peak happens on the 13th August. Therefore, the best time to watch them is on the nights of August 12th and August 13th. The Moon is just passed full which means that his is not the best year to look for presides. With that said, I would really encourage you to get out for a look if the sky is clear.
To watch the Perseids, make yourself comfortable. A sun lounger or hammock is ideal. Also make sure you are warm, a sleeping bag can be very useful for this, as are hot drinks such as tea or hot chocolate! You can look in any direction, but try to look away from any lights (and the Moon) around to ensure you aren’t blinded. It’s a good idea to position the Moon behind a tree or wall from where you are. The best time to watch is between 23.00 on the 12th and 3.30am on the 13th. Meteor showers tend to be best after midnight, as the Earth is facing into the stream of dust causing the meteors.
Stars and Constellations
The above sky chart is for 00:00 on 15/08/2022. You can click on the chart to open a new tab and bring you to Heavens Above. On this website you can generate a custom chart for the time and date you wish. The spring constellations of Leo (the lion), Bootes (the herdsman) and Virgo (the virgin) are now setting in the west.
High overhead are Cygnus (the swan), Lyra (the liar) and Aquila (the eagle). The brightest stars in these constellations are Deneb, Vega and Altair and they make up the Summer Triangle and is a true sign that we are in the middle of Summer. The misty path of the Milky Way also runs through this area of sky.
In the south at this time of year, is the constellation of Scorpius (the scorpion). This is the direction of the centre of our galaxy, the Milky Way. It never rises very high in the sky from Ireland, but if you look in the direction you should be able to make out that it is almost misty or milky with stars.
The autumn constellations of Pegasus, Pisces and Perseus are rising in the east at this time.
Paul Smith 