Like June, July stargazing is a late-night adventure that’s definitely worth staying up for! It’s prime time for the summer constellations, a show that’s not to be missed. Grab a lawn chair, lean back, and let the wonders of the universe soak in! The brightest star in the sky this month, Arcturus, is a celestial marvel perched high in the western sky as night falls. It appears at the tail of a giant kite, known as the constellation Bootes, the hunting herdsman.
Nearby is a breathtaking sight through even a small telescope. It’s the Hercules globular cluster, a spherical cluster of thousands and thousands of stars, a mere 25,000 light-years away. This is a stargazing summer classic, a sight that will leave you in awe! I have it marked on the attached July star map.
In the eastern heavens, you’ll find more of the prime stars of summer on the rise. A great way to navigate this part of the sky is to locate the “Summer Triangle,” made up of three bright stars, the brightest in each of their respective constellations. You can’t miss them as they’re the brightest stars in that part of the sky.
The highest and brightest star is Vega, the brightest star in a small constellation called Lyra the Lyre. The second-brightest star on the lower right is Altair, the brightest star in Aquila the Eagle. The third-brightest at the left corner of the summer triangle is Deneb, the brightest star in the tail of Cygnus the Swan.
A large part of Cygnus is known as the “Northern Cr.
