Planet Scenes July 2020
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Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE), July 12 Comet NEOWISE was the best visual comet for northern hemisphere observers in many years, and I was lucky enough to be able to get some good pictures of it in the morning sky from my home east of Fredericksburg, Virginia, on July 12. |
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Venus and Comet NEOWISE, July 9 Venus went through inferior conjunction in June 2020, which was the first one of this series of events since the last transit of Venus in June 2012, which means that it very *nearly* crossed the Sun's surface but missed it barely. These inferior conjunctions occur at Venus' descending node, which means that it emerges in the morning sky heading south of the ecliptic. We can see that play out here, as Venus is embedded in the middle of the Hyades cluster, well to the south of the ecliptic. |
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Full Moon Rising, July 5 The full Moon nearest to mid-summer, which astronomically is the start of the summer season, in other words June 22, is often referred to as the Honey Moon because of its golden color due to obscuration from summer haze and humidity in the air. Here we see the Honey Moon rising over my neighborhood near Fredericksburg, Virginia. |
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