See Perseid Meteors, The Milky Way And Mercury: This Week’s Night Sky

A Perseid (shooting star) from A Veiga, Galicia, Spain.

Each Monday I pick out the northern hemisphere’s celestial highlights (mid-northern latitudes) for the week ahead, but be sure to check my main feed for more in-depth articles on stargazing, astronomy, eclipses and more.

It’s time to check the light pollution map and get yourself somewhere dark for one of the sky-watching highlights of 2023—the annual Perseid meteor shower! Promising as many as 100 to 150 “shooting stars” each hour if you’re beneath a clear, dark sky, the meteor shower is raging all week, though aim for the peak night—Saturday through Sunday—for the best views. Since 2 a.m. is the best time to be outside looking up it’s ideal for a camping expedition.

However, there’s more going on in the night sky this week if you know when and where to look:

Tuesday, August 8: Last Quarter Moon Near Jupiter

Today our satellite will reach its Last Quarter phase, rising just after midnight on August 8 just above Jupiter. As well as being a lovely view—and the ideal time to get a telescope out to study two of the solar system’s most beautiful objects—the Last Quarter Moon clears the way for 10 successive nights of dark, moonless skies.

Wednesday, August 9: Moon, Pleiades And Uranus

If you can stay awake until about 01:00 a.m., look to the eastern sky and you will see an 80% illuminated waning gibbous moon rise, sandwiched between the sparkling Pleiades open cluster (also called the “Seven Sisters”) and the seventh planet Uranus. All three look exquisite in binoculars, but the alignment makes it a particularly good opportunity to find Uranus.

Thursday, August 10: Mercury Farthest From Sun

The closest planet to the sun tonight reaches its “greatest elongation west,” which sees it appear to be over 27° away from our star. So instead of Mercury being lost in its glare, as it usually is, it will pop out after dark in the western sky. It’s a great opportunity to see the “Swift Planet,” though you may need binoculars—and a low western horizon right after sunset. Above Mercury will be fourth planet Mars.

After a few years under moonlit skies, the northern hemisphere’s most popular meteor shower’s peak occurs in 2023 when the moon has set. Known for bright and fast-moving meteors (and frequent “fireballs”), the Perseids are caused by comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the Sun approximately every 133 years. The Perseids are named after the constellation Perseus, from which the meteors appear to radiate.

The best advice is to be outside after dark and push on through until dawn. That could be tricky for most—but don’t miss the midnight through 04:00 a.m. shift when Perseus will be high up in a dark sky.

The galactic centre area of the Milky Way in Sagittarius behind a grand old barn in southern ... [+] Alberta. (Photo by: Alan Dyer/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images).

This week—and for the next two weeks—is the best time of year to see the Milky Way from the northern hemisphere. You need clear skies, of course, but also dark skies. If you’re going somewhere dark for the Perseid meteor shower then look to the south and you should see an arc of stars from southeast to southwest. If you’re lucky you’ll also see Perseid meteors blazing across your field of view.

If you haven't already noticed, stargazing for long periods outside can be exhausting, particularly for your neck. One way of lessening the strain is to invest in a reclining lawn chair. Leaning back and resting while stargazing or watching meteor showers is much easier that way.

Times and dates given apply to mid-northern latitudes. For the most accurate location-specific information consult online planetariums like Stellarium and The Sky Live. Check planet-rise/planet-set, sunrise/sunset and moonrise/moonset times for where you are.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.