Very late tonight, a thinning Crescent Moon rises just to the left of Jupiter near 2:45 AM, climbing a bit higher and more easterly before the morning twilight overwhelms them by 4:30 or so. The Earth’s orbit shifts our viewing, bringing Jupiter into the skies 4 minutes earlier each day, or an hour earlier about every two weeks. It will be early September before we see Jupiter rise in the early evening.
Wednesday:
If you have a low and fairly level horizon to your north, you’ll be able to watch the bright star Capella scrape the northern horizon. It is low in the north-northwest when it appears near 9:30, and is nearly on the horizon, due north, near 12:30 AM, then slowly rising in the northeast, not really noticeable until the morning’s twilight begins near 4 o’clock, with the brilliant Venus well to the right.
Thursday:
Draco, the Dragon is not as well known as its neighbors – the Big and Little Dippers, or Big and Little Bears – but it is a beautiful pattern to find in the sky. Look between the two Dippers to see a thin line of faint stars that hooks half-way around the Little Dipper, then curves the other way, topped off with a diamond-shaped head.