Jelly Bean Radio  

There's an old cliché that says the early bird catches the worm. Well this month, the phrase holds true for skywatchers. Some of the best planetary sights occupy the predawn sky. Venus and Mars pair up in the east among the conspicuous stars of Taurus the Bull. A waning crescent Moon joins the action around midmonth.

As this scene rises, Jupiter dips in the southwest after a nearly full night of visibility. For those of you uninterested in chasing worms, the evening sky offers some good final views of Saturn before the ringed world succumbs to the Sun's glare in August.

Key sky events in July:
July 22 -- The longest total solar eclipse of the century occurs over Asia
July 27/28 -- The Delta Aquarid meteor shower peaks

Targets for July 17-24, 2009
Naked eye: The Coathanger
Small telescope: Globular cluster M22
Large telescope: The Phantom Streak





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