Today:
The brightest star in the Summer Triangle, Vega, appears nearly overhead as the last of the twilight fades near 7:40 PM. Vega’s brilliance is due, in part, to its location just 25 light years away, and because it is the fourth brightest star within 50 light years of here. Later this evening, near 9 o’clock, a second star in the Summer Triangle, Deneb, crosses the very top of the sky, the Zenith.
Saturday:
The Moon rises about a half hour before sunset this evening, one day before it becomes exactly Full, the “Corn Moon” as this year’s September Moon is known. The Harvest Moon occurs closest to the Equinox, which this year is October 6th, though the Full Moon goes by many names in various cultures, including the Mid-Autumn Moon in China, the Barley Moon in the British Isles, and the Nut Moon to the Cherokee. The Full Moon appears opposite from the Sun, as was Saturn will be in two weeks. That’s why you’ll see Saturn just to the Moon’s left as the evening progresses.
Sunday:
The Moon is Full each month as it reaches a position exactly opposite the Sun, so tonight’s Full “Corn” Moon rises as the Sun sets, and then sets as the Sun rises tomorrow morning. This connects with the Moon’s companion tonight, rising to the left and a bit later than the Moon, the planet Saturn. Saturn is nearing its opposite position to the Sun for the year, not surpirisingly called “opposition”, on the 21st.