The last week of July has been a busy place in the eastern, predawn sky! The waning moon has been passing near planets, stars and star clusters in the morning sky. Jupiter is by far the brightest object you will see there, after the moon. The photos have been pouring in to EarthSky Community Photos. Here are some favorites.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Kris Hazelbaker from Grangeville, Idaho, captured this view on July 31, 2024, and wrote: “The moon, Jupiter, Mars, Aldebaran and the Hyades, and the Pleiades shining in the eastern sky as dawn breaks.” Thank you! Labels by EarthSky.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Meiying Lee from Taipei, Taiwan, shared this image on July 31, 2024, and wrote: “Although it is still summer, Orion has quietly risen in the eastern sky before sunrise. In the pink sky, Orion, the Pleiades, the Hyades star cluster, Jupiter, Mars and the waning moon put on a beautiful starry sky show.” Thank you! Edits and labels by EarthSky.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | David Hoskin from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, shared this image on July 31, 2024. Thank you!
Moon and Jupiter in late July 2024
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | EarthSky’s own Raúl Cortés, from Monterrey, Mexico, shared this image from July 30, 2024, and wrote: “It was cloudy, but the moon, Jupiter, Mars, the Pleiades and the Hyades were there just waiting for the clouds to break.” Thank you, Raúl!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Sudhir Sharma from Stormville, New York, shared this image on July 30, 2024, and wrote: “This morning’s partially cloudy skies show waning crescent moon, 25.7% illuminated, Mars on the right and Jupiter and Aldebaran in lower areas.” Thank you! Labels added by EarthSky.View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Steven Sweet Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, shared this image from the morning of July 29, 2024, when the moon was poised to begin sweeping past the predawn planets and stars. Steven wrote: “Moon with the [dipper-shaped] Pleiades, Mars, Jupiter and Aldebaran.” Also … see that V-shaped group of stars? That’s the Hyades; it forms the Bull’s face in Taurus. Thank you, Steven!
The moon and the 7 Sisters
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Adeel Shafiq from Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, captured the moon and the Pleiades or 7 Sisters on July 30, 2024. Adeel wrote: “Tonight the waning crescent was in the Taurus constellation. The weather was tricky as there were clouds near the eastern horizon. But the moving clouds turned out to be helpful for imaging and created beautiful bands of lights.” Thank you, Adeel!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | As seen by Meiying Lee in Taipei, Taiwan, the moon occulted – or passed in front of – some of the stars of the Pleiades. She created this composite image of views from July 30, 2024, and wrote: “First, Merope entered the bright part of the moon and was occulted at 4:23 in the morning. Next, the Pleiades and the moon slowly approached, and at 5:08 AM, Alcyone also entered the bright part of the moon and was occulted. Unfortunately, it was already bright at this time, and we could no longer observe the phenomenon of them leaving the dark part of the moon.” Thank you, Meiying!View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Devendra Kumar from Bharkaun, India, shared this image of the moon and the Pleiades on July 30, 2024. Thank you!
EXTRA: Evening planets
Venus and Mercury are back, too, low in the west after sunset now. Mercury will soon disappear again, but Venus will be visible in the western twilight through the end of this year. It’ll be farthest from the sunset in January 2025. Look for Venus in the bright evening twilight!
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Gustavo Wilches-Chaux from Bogota, Colombia, captured this view of the sky on July 29, 2024, and wrote: “Mercury and Regulus in the top. Venus over the tip of the dark cloud in the bottom. This happened at the end of the amazing sunset.” Thank you!
Bottom line: The last week of July has been busy! The moon and Jupiter were surrounded by bright planets and stars. Did you see them? Also, bonus! Venus is back after sunset! Here’s a gallery of images from the EarthSky Community, assembled just for you.
Cristina Ortiz - based in Granada, Spain - is EarthSky's defender of animals with her "lifeform" videos at EarthSky YouTube. Discover the most fascinating facts about all the beings with whom we share Earth. Are you ready for the adventure? Cristina has been an EarthSky.org editor since 2021. She has a master’s degree in translation and interpreting, specializing in science and technology. "Since I was a kid," she says, "I could feel that passion for science and communication."
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