Planet Scenes July 2023

		July 22 We finally got a nice evening and therefore a good view of Venus getting very low, on this date the exact same elevation as Mercury, with Mars and Regulus still in the picture as well.  The circumstances of Venus' apparition this year are similar to that which occurred eight years ago, as captured in this image by a Greek imager on July 18, 2015.
		July 10 Venus, Mars, and Regulus are gathered low in the evening sky.  Venus has just passed its moment of greatest illuminated extent and has been slowly falling away from Mars, to which she was closest on June 30 and July 1.  Compare this juxtaposition of Venus with Regulus to its 8 year cycle predecessor of July 2015.  The APOD from July 1, 2015 shows Venus and Jupiter instead of Mars as it is this time.
	July 4 Our weather has been terrible all spring and summer, so opportunities to snap a picture of anything in the sky have been few and far between!  Scorpius is always a nice shot under almost any conditions.
	July 2 Full Moon of July is known as the "Buck Moon" and although it is officially scheduled to occur tomorrow, this evening the Moon was nearly full, shining through scattered clouds well off to the left of Antares and the head of Scorpius.

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