Today:
Very high in the north, nearly overhead, the seven stars of the Big Dipper, while close to the northern horizon, with a low and level view, you find the stars of the Queen, Cassiopeia, in the form of a “W”-shaped pattern. The Big Dipper and the Queen are always opposite each other, with the North Star directly between them. Six months later, in November, they switch positions.
Friday:
Prowling the heavens about halfway up in the southwest this evening, you’ll find Leo, the Lion, emerging at about 9:30 PM. Leo is one of the horoscope signs, its traditional dates of late July into the third week of August marking when the sun was against the background of these stars 5000 years ago. This now happens one month later.
Saturday:
Just before 9 o’clock, reprising a scene from early this month, the Moon is just one day shy of being Full as it rises in the company of the red star Antares in the twilight, coming into view as the sky darkens from 9:00 to 9:30 PM. Like earlier this month, the Moon’s orbit shifts it slowly east, while the spinning Earth sends it west, cresting low in the south about a half hour after midnight.