July 2021 Moon Phases & Astronomy

July 2021 is busy! The first full month of summer is jam packed with three meteor showers, five moon phases, a double lunar conjunction, and more! From July 27th to July 30th three meteor showers will take place. Pluto will reach Opposition and be viewable with a telescope. Check out the full calendar at the bottom of the post, so you don’t miss anything!

A quick summary for July 2021:

• The Earth will be at the farthest point from the Sun on July 5th.
• On July 12th, the Moon is in conjunction with both Venus and Mars. These two planets will be in conjunction by themselves the 13th.
• Pluto reaches Opposition of the Sun on July 18th, which makes it a great time to view the dwarf planet.
• δ-Aquarids peak on July 27th.
• Piscis Austrinids meteor shower on July 28th, followed by α-Capricornids on July 30th.

This may be a great time to go camping with a clear view of the sky, weather and location permitting! Keep reading for information on from where the meteor showers are viewable.

July has five moon phases, and two Third Quarter Moons. Today is the first Third Quarter Moon. During the Third Quarter Moon,the Moon is perpendicular to the Sun and Earth, on the opposite side as the First Quarter Moon. The Sun illuminates only half of the Moon’s surface as viewed from the Earth. The Moon now rises around midnight and sets close to noon.

Learn more about these events in the Glossary of Astronomical Events!

There are plenty of brand new, custom prints in the shop! Custom artwork makes a great, inexpensive gift!

Moon Phases for July 2021

Third Quarter Moon	New Moon	First Quarter Moon	Full Moon	Third Quarter Moon
July 1st	July 9th	July 17th	July 23rd	July 31st

All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST) or Eastern Daylight Savings Time (EDT).

Moon Facts

Apogee:	5th
Ascending Node:	6th
Descending Node:	20th
Perigee:	21st
Moon Name:	Buck Moon

Meteor Showers

Name	Date	Radiant Point (Origin Location)	Direction to Look	Best Time*
δ-Aquarids Meteor Shower	July 27th	Aquarius	East, starting at horizon	10 PM – 3 AM
Piscis Austrinids Meteor Shower	July 28th	Piscis Austrinus	East, starting at horizon	11:15 PM – 3 AM
α-Capricornids Meteor Shower	July 30th	Capricorn	West South West	1 AM

* For the East Coast of the United States

According to In The Sky, the δ-Aquarids or Delta Aquarids are visible on the East Coast of the US after 10 PM eastern time. Face the east to see long lived shooting stars. The Piscis Austrinids will be visible on the East Coast after 11:15 PM local and will remain so until dawn. It will be the most active around 3 AM. Follow the constellation Piscis Astrinus, close to the constellation Aquarius, from the eastern horizon for meteors. The α-Capricornids will be visible all night and radiate from Capricorn between due West and South West.

In The Sky has detailed information about upcoming meteor showers on their website!

Planetary Alignments

Mercury	Earth	Venus and Mars	Pluto
Greatest Western Elongation	Aphelion	Geocentric Conjunction	Solar Opposition
July 4th	July 5th	July 13th	May 29th
Ideal time to view planet	Farthest point from the Sun	Great photo opportunity	Ideal time to view planet

Lunar Conjunctions

Conjunction with Mercury	Conjunction with Venus	Conjunction with Mars
July 8th	July 12th	July 12th
Conjunction with Saturn	Conjunction with Jupiter
July 24th	July 25th

Astronomy Calendar

Thanks For Reading!

2021 Moon Phase Calendars are still on sale!