This week's night sky offers a little bit of everything — bright planets, classic constellations, and beautiful moon moments. Saturn and Neptune cozy up to the moon early in the week, followed by the third quarter phase on Thursday, which brings darker evening skies perfect for deep sky targets. On Friday, take a tour of the stinging scorpion in the south, then look east before dawn Sunday to catch a crescent moon drifting through the glittering Pleiades. By Monday, Venus and Jupiter join the show in a stunning pre-dawn trio. Whether you're a night owl or an early riser, the sky has something for you.
After midnight, look east to see the bright, waning gibbous moon shining near Saturn. Faint Neptune hovers just above Saturn — a telescope will help you spot its blue glow. All three rise high together by dawn.
The moon reaches its third quarter phase at 8:38 p.m. EDT (02:38 GMT on Friday, July 18). It will appear half-lit and rise around midnight, offering dark skies in the evening — ideal for deep sky observing.
Look south after dusk to spot the fierce form of Scorpius. Bright Antares marks the heart, while the constellation's long tail curls into the Milky Way. Shaula, its "stinger," is a highlight near the horizon.
In the early morning sky, a delicate crescent moon glides through the bright Pleiades star cluster in Taurus. Binoculars offer a dazzling view. In the Americas, the moon begins passing through the stars around 4:25 a.m. EDT.
A picture-perfect morning! The slim crescent moon shines above brilliant Venus in the eastern sky before sunrise, with Jupiter twinkling lower left. On Tuesday, the moon will shift between the two planets, perfect for a photo sequence.
The third quarter moon arrives on Thursday, July 17, marking the final quarter of this lunar cycle. It rises around midnight and hangs in the sky through the morning hours. This phase is a favorite for late-night observing, since it leaves the evening sky dark, ideal for stargazing and exploring deep-sky objects like galaxies and nebulas.
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It's a busy day for all things space science and news, starting with the return of the private Axiom-4 astronauts from the International Space Station. The team of four stayed slightly longer than expected but have undocked successfully and are Earthbound.
Other headlines include gravitational waves revealing the largest black hole merger detected, a mysterious SpaceX satellite being launched into Earth's orbit, and $1 billion being earmarked in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" for the U.S. Space Force to build a new, secretive space plane. We have all that and more for your daily read.
