Today:
Directly overhead this evening at 8:10 PM is Deneb, the tail of the Swan, or the top of the Northern Cross. Although Deneb appears as the faintest star of the Summer Triangle, it is by far the most powerful. While Vega shines 40 times brighter than our Sun, and Altair about 10 times brighter, Deneb emits an estimated 200 thousand times more light!
Friday:
Over the next week, a comet rises into the western skies, called Tsuchinshan-ATLAS. As long as it survives it passage around the Sun at the end of September, its climbs higher each evening, very low and in the twilight near due west this evening, its tail almost straight up. Although it gets fainter each night, it appears higher, and later in a darker evening sky.
Saturday:
When Columbus landed in the Bahamas on this date in 1492, he used the North Star to determine his location. However, he mistakenly used the star Alderamin in Cepheus, and thought he landed near what is now Boston. Either tropical breezes, or an able assistant, helped him to correct his error.