This week's night sky where you can enjoy the close approach of the crescent moon and planets, when the Earth is at its farthest point from the sun | Forbes Japan Official Website (Forbes Japan)

Here's what you need to know about stargazing and astronomy this week.

Wednesday, July 3: Crescent Moon and Jupiter Appear

On this day, the waning crescent is only 8% illuminated, and its thin shape is quite striking, if you can find it. If you look near the east-northeast horizon, you will see a very thin crescent just to the left of bright Jupiter. Capella, the Pleiades, and Mars form the background above the pair.

July 5 (Friday): Earth passes apogee

The Earth's orbit around the Sun is slightly elliptical, so the distance between them changes throughout the year. On this day, the Earth will pass through aphelion, the point farthest from the Sun in its orbit. On January 3, 2024, at its closest point to the Sun, the Earth was 147.1 million kilometers from the Sun; on July 5, it was 152.1 million kilometers away.

July 6 (Saturday): New Moon

On the sixth day, the new moon, promises a dark night sky with no moon. From the seventh day onwards, a thin crescent moon appears at twilight. During a new moon, the moon is about halfway between the Earth and the sun, so it is completely invisible from Earth. The exception is during a solar eclipse. North America experienced a total solar eclipse in April.

July 7 (Sunday): Young Moon

A week of stargazing will come to an end as the Moon and planets move closer together after sunset. If you look to the west-northwest after sunset, you might see a waning crescent, only 2% illuminated, emerging from the Sun’s glare. Mercury is just to the left of the Moon, but you’ll need binoculars to see it. There’s also bright Venus below the Moon, but it will be very difficult to spot.

This week's celestial object to see with binoculars: Tidal Nebula (M8)

Although not as pretty as the Orion Nebula (M42) in winter, the Flat Tidal Nebula (M8) is just as beautiful. Located in the constellation Sagittarius, this diffuse nebula covers an area about three times the size of the Moon and can be seen in the southern sky. It lies to the right of the famous star cap, the Teapot, in Sagittarius. You'll need binoculars to see it.

The Flat Tidal Nebula (M8) in Sagittarius (Getty Images)

The Tidal Flat Nebula is about 5,200 light-years from our solar system, and like the Orion Nebula, stars are being born there. The visible light comes from the young star's ultraviolet radiation, which ionizes dust and gas. What the Hubble Space Telescope seesthisHe is.

(Forbes.com Original Text)