Thursday July 2 to Thursday July 9

The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 8. On July 7 Earth is at aphelion. In the morning Saturn and Mars form a long line. Saturn is close to the Moon on the 8th. Mars and Uranus are at their closest together in binoculars on the 4th and 5th and the pair are also midway between the Pleiades and Hyades clusters. In the evening, Venus and Jupiter form a line. On the 9th Venus is just 1° from Leo’s brightest star, Regulus. The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 8. On July 7 Earth is at aphelion, when it is furthest from the Sun. Eastern horizon on the morning of Saturday, July 4 as seen from Adelaide at 5:54 ACST (90 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen). Mars is closest to Uranus and between the Hyades and Pleiades clusters. The inset shows the binocular view of Mars, Uranus and the Pleiades at this time. Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes before sunrise). Eastern horizon on the morning of Wednesday, July 8 as…