The Planets
Planet Data For July
Click on any planet below to go straight to its section.
The table below shows key data for the planets this month, including rise, transit and set times, as well as magnitude, apparent size and position data (right ascension and declination).
Events that occur when the sun is below the horizon are shown with a black background and white text. All other events happen when the sun is in the sky and other for not visible for observation.
The month of July brings us all of the planets, but some only just, and others only in the early hours of the morning. Mercury and Venus play ball by being visible after sunset, especially later in the month. The rest are all (early) morning planets, with only Saturn reaching its highest mark during the hours of darkness.
All of the images below can be opened full screen in a new tab by clicking on them
Mercury
05th July
6° above the western horizon after sunset is where we can spy Mercury’s growing disc.
15th July
Ten days later and it’s now higher in the sky and against a darker background.
25th July
At 9 pm, Mercury is 8° high but only 1/3rd of its disc is illuminated.
Mercury puts on a pleasing display in the evening after sunset this month. You’ll still need a good view of the western horizon and the glow of the sun will be working hard to ruin the view, but the planet is pleasing bright, especially earlier in the month.
As July pushes on, so does Mercury’s journey around the sun and we’ll notice two competing phenomena in the eyepiece. As it travels towards us, the Mercurial disc increases in size – pushing from below six to over nine arcseconds across. At the same time, the small planet is coming to move between us and the sun and so we’ll see less of its disc illuminated. By the end of the month, only a quarter of its disc will be lit.
Venus
05th July
This view at 9:30 shows that Venus is still too close to the sun for us to see it.
15th July
The picture is steadily improving but, today, Venus sets only half an hour after the sun, leaving no real chance to see it.
25th July
Towards the month’s end and we could finally steal a glimpse of the brightest planet soon after sunset.
We could just about spy Venus in the last week of this month, but it’ll take dedication and offer little reward. August is when in will once more pull free of our central star and allow us to enjoy its brightness.
Mars
05th July
If you can be outside at 4:30 then Mars is sailing fairly high in the dark eastern sky.
15th July
Near the Pleiades, we see Mars 25° high with a disc steadily growing to six arcseconds wide.
25th July
At the slightly more humane time of 5am, Mars is 31° high and still shadowing the Pleiades.
The Red Planet is becoming worth observing once again – the first time in a year or more that its disc has approached six arcseconds.
We’re still several months away from peak Mars viewing, but it’s only a few more weeks before we’ll be able to glimpse it before midnight. With its disc size steadily growing week by week until December, the best viewing of the year is still to come.
Jupiter
05th July
Jupiter is also teasing us with very early mornings this month. Here, it’s 4:30 and Jupiter is 9° high.
15th July
Chasing Mars across the sky, Jupiter rises to 15° by the middle of the month at the same time.
25th July
At 5am, we can see how much more quickly Jupiter is moving than the Red Planet.
At the beginning of the month, Jupiter is a tricky proposition. By the end of July, it has almost chased down Mars and is offering us fabulous views of its rings and moons… but only if you’re prepared to be outside in the earlier hours of the morning.
Jupiter’s disc begins to grow once again this month, but so little that we won’t be able to tell at the eyepiece. What we should all get prepared for is the morning of 14th August, when Jupiter catches up with Mars and the two planets are less than half a degree apart in the morning sky.
Saturn
05th July
On the bright side, if you do find yourself outside at 4:30 this morning, Saturn is also waiting for you alongside Mars and Jupiter.
15th July
The ringed planet transits around 5am today, when it’ll be halfway between the horizon and zenith.
25th July
Enjoy the close approach of the moon this morning. This is the view at 5am.
Saturn is far enough away that it doesn’t change much from our perspective no matter where it and Earth are in their respective journeys around the sun. Its disc grows marginally this month, resulting in it shining slightly brighter at the month’s end than at its start.
More significantly from our point of view, it’ll become a comfortable object to view in the evening from next month.
Uranus & Neptune
15th July – Uranus
In the early hours of this morning, Uranus and Mars are just half a degree apart.
15th July – Neptune
At the same time, Neptune is much further south, closer to Saturn, and easily high enough for us to have a go at tracking it down.
Both of the frozen giants at the edge of the solar system are visible this month. Like so many of their closer siblings, they too are best seen in the early hours of the morning.
With Mars signposting the location of Uranus so accurately (they’ll be inside the same eyepiece view on the morning of the 15th) this might be your best opportunity yet to discover it for yourself.
All Planets Viewer
Use the table below to see when each of the planets is observable for each day this month. Click on it for full screen.
A planet is classed as observable when it is more than 10° above the horizon and the sky is dark enough for it to be observed.
Planet ephemeris tables produced with the kind permission of Dominic Ford. Sky images are courtesy of SkySafari Pro 6.