Planet Scenes July 2022
July highlight is three pairs of solar system bodies
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July 30 (Saturn and Vesta) Late in the evening on July 30, just before midnight, I took advantage of a very clear night to get a shot of Saturn moving westward toward its opposition on 13 August; on this evening it appears to make an equilateral triangle with δ and γ Capricorni. It is magnitude +0.37, while Vesta, seen near the bottom of the image, in southwestern Aquarius, is magnitude +6.28. |
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July 30 (Mars and Uranus) Most of July was not conducive for imaging, but late in the month I did manage one shot of Mars and Uranus, in the early morning hours on July 30, close together in Aries. Mars will pass south of Uranus on August 1st. It has brightened noticeably since the last time I imaged the planets, now up to magnitude +0.22 (much brighter than Aldebaran, which is magnitude +0.87), while Uranus remains near its usual brightness at magnitude +5.77. As we can see from the view showing the ecliptic, Mars remains well south of it, while Uranus is just barely below. |
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July 30 (Jupiter and Neptune) Also early in the morning of July 30, around 4:30 a.m. EDT, I obtained this view of Jupiter and Neptune in Pisces. Jupiter is technically still in Cetus but basically we can say that this upcoming opposition season for Jupiter is its "Pisces year," nearly replicating that of 2010, when I got a picture of the Jupiter - Uranus conjunction on September 11 of that year. On this date in 2022, Jupiter is magnitude -2.70, while Neptune is +7.84. Both planets are still substantially below the ecliptic, with Jupiter being about 1° 25' south of it on this date. A great description of Jupiter's 2022 apparition is provided by Guy Ottewell as usual. |
