Today:
Jupiter has returned to the evening skies….barely! Our largest planet rises just before midnight in the northeast, with the waning Crescent Moon quickly accompanying it just 10 minutes later. Mars tags along 15 minutes later, giving this trio several hours to rise higher into the east-southeast, where you can see them from 4 to 5:30 AM.
Wednesday:
One of the curious features in the Milky Way, arched high across the evening skies from the south to overhead, is found next to the star Deneb, the least bright star in the Summer Triangle. Look for a patch of dark sky, known as the Northern Coal Sack. It is not an absence of stars, but rather a thick cloud of gas and dust blocking the light from more distant stars.
Thursday:
The Andromeda Galaxy is the only distant galaxy we can see with our own eyes. In the next few nights look in the northeast, just below the Milky Way, and about one third of the way up from the horizon near 9:15 PM EDT. It appears as a small, oval smudge of light, enhanced by viewing through binoculars.