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The following is a brief discussion of just a few of the many astronomical objects that can be seen during this week, Aug 24 to Aug 30, 2008.

International Space Station

The International Space Station is visible in the Denver area at the following times this week:
Mon. morning Aug 25 at 6:08 am the ISS appears in SSW and disappears in ENE at 6:13 am reaches -0.6
Wed. morning Aug 27 at 5:28 am it appears in SSW and disappears in ENE at 5:33 am
Thurs. morning Aug 28 at 5:55 am the ISS appears in WSW and disappears in NE at 6:00 am
Fri. morning Aug 29 at 4:50 am it appears in SSE and disappears in ENE at 4:53 am

The International Space Station is bright and usually very easy to see but it moves quickly and is only visible for a few minutes so it is also easy to miss. Whether it is visible or not, its position, and when it appears varies widely depending on your location.

Hubble Space Telescope

In the Denver area the Hubble Space Telescope can be seen low in the southern sky. It appears in southern part of constellation Scorpius and crosses to Sagittarius.

Wed. Aug 27 at 9:05 pm in the SSW and disappears in the south at 9:06 pm (magnitude 3.8)
Thurs. Aug 28 at 9:03 pm in the SSW and disappears in the south at 9:05 pm (magnitude 3.6)
Fri. Aug 29 at 9:01 pm and disappears in the south at 9:03 pm (magnitude 3.5)
Sat. Aug 30 at 8:59 pm and disappears in the south at 9:02 pm (magnitude 3.5)

Check www.heavens-above.com for times when the Hubble or ISS are visible at your location.

Sun

On Sunday Aug 24 sunrise at 6:23 am and sunset at 7:46 pm mdt
On Saturday Aug 30 sunrise at 6:29 am and sunset at 7:37 pm mdt

There are no sunspots visible on the solar disk as of Sunday. See www.swpc.noaa.gov for more current information about solar activity (or the lack thereof).

Moon

The moon is at lunation 23.8 on Sunday Aug 24 and is new on Saturday Aug 30 at 1:58 pm mdt

Planets

Mars, Venus, and Mercury are low in the west in bright twilight about a half hour after sunset. Venus is quite bright at magnitude -3.8 and is 10.8 arc sec across. You'll probably need binoculars to spot Mars and Mercury.

Jupiter is straight south and about 25 degrees above the horizon around 9:20 pm. It is the brightest object in the sky at that time at magnitude -2.4. It is 44 arc sec across as viewed by telescopes here on Earth. It is 4.52 astronomical units or 420 million miles away. The Great Red Spot is a giant storm that has been raging in the atmosphere of Jupiter for perhaps hundreds of years. It crosses the center of the disk at the following times this week Tues morning Aug. 26 at 1:30 am (low)
Tues evening Aug 26 at 9:22 pm (high up, excellent position)
Thurs. evening Aug 28 at 11:00 pm
Sun. morning Aug. 31 at 12:38 am

Neptune is constellation Capricornus. It is magnitude 7.8 in brightness and its disk is only 2.4 arc sec across. It is 29.1 a.u. or 2.7 billion miles away.

Uranus is in constellation Aquarius. It is magnitude 5.7 in brightness and its disk is 3.7 arc sec across. It is 19.1 a.u. or 1.8 billion miles away

Dark Sky Objects - Planetary Nebula

IC5146 is located in the northeastern part of Cygnus. Althogh its 10th magnitude this is a tough object to view in the eyepiece. It appears as round diffuse haze even in larger telescopes. A hydrogen-beta filter may improve contrast and make some of the dark lanes visible. You need quite dark skies to view this object.

Much easier to see is another planetary in Cygnus, NGC 6826. This is a great object to view, especially in scopes in the 10-12 inch range. The brightness of the central star overwhelms your view causing the surrounding nebula to disappear. Look away from the central star and the nebula re-appears giving this object its descriptive name, "the blinking planetary"

Comets

C/2007 W1 Boattini is in constellation Aries. It is magnitude 8.9 in brightness so you may be able to see it in binoculars and small telescopes. Its coma is 11 arc min across.

6P/d'Arrest is in constellation Capricornus. It is magnitude 11 in brightness. Coma is only 1 arc min across so it may be difficult to identify.

C/2008 J1 Boattini is constellation Ursa Minor. It is magnitude 10.8 in brightness and coma is 4 arc min across

19P/Borrelli is in constellation Cancer. It is magnitude 10.9 in brightness and coma is 1 arc min across.

15P/Finley is in constellation Gemini. It is magnitude 11.8 in brightness and the coma is 3 arc min across

C/2007 N3 Lulin is in constellation Ophiuchus. It is magnitude 11.3 and coma is 1 arc min across

C/2006 OF2 Broughton is in constellation Camelopardalis it is magnitude 11.2 and coma is 2 arc min across

17P Holmes magnitude 7.5 and com is 1 degree degree across. It is still low and due to large size it will be difficult to view.

See www.aerith.net or www.skyhound.com for charts and more information about comets. Also check the Astroleague's Comet club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/comet/comet.htm

Summary

This week you can observe the International Space Station in the early morning; view the Hubble Space Telescope in the evening; observe Jupiter's Great Red Spot cross the planets disk; and observe faint nebulas, galaxies, and comets.

The following is a discussion of a few astronomical objects to see up in the sky this week, August 10 to August 16, 2008.

International Space Station

There are no visible passes over the Denver area this week.
Check www.heavens-above.com for times specific to your location.

Sun

Sunrise on Sun. Aug. 10 is at 6:10 am
Sunset on Sun. Aug. 10 is at 8:06 pm mdt
(for those of us at 40 degrees north latitude)

Sunrise on Sat. Aug. 16 is at 6:16 am

Sunset on Sat. Aug. 16 is at 7:58 pm mdt

There are no active regions visible on the disk as of this Saturday evening, Aug 9.
For more information about the Sun and solar activity see www.swpc.noaa.gov

Moon

The Moon starts the week at lunation 9.8.
Some features to view are Mare Frigoris, Promitorium Laplace, Mare Imbrium, Copernicus, Bullialdus, Palus Epidarum, and Longomontanus

On Monday, lunation is 10.8. Targets are Sinus Irridum, Promotorium Heraclides, Kepler, Mare Humorum, Gassendi, and Hippalus

On Tuesday, lunation is 11.8. Lunar1 targets are Vallis Shroter,Aristarchus, Oceanus Procellarum, and Billy

On Wednesday, lunation is 12.8. Targets are Sinus Roris, Reiner Gamma and Shickard.

The moon is full on Saturday Aug 16 at 3:16 pm MDT
For more information about the Astroleague Lunar 1 club, see http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/lunar/lunar1.html

Planets

Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Saturn are all difficult to see in the bright twilight after sunset. Look for them with binoculars close to the horizon about a half hour after sun down.

The planet Jupiter is visible in the southeast as the sky darkens. It is visible straight south at 10 pm and easy to find as it the brightest object visible at that the time other the moon. It is currently magnitude -2.4 and the disk is 45 arc sec across as seen with telescopes on Earth. It is currently 405.5 million miles from Earth.

The great red spot crosses the disk at the following times this week:

Mon. evening Aug 11 at 11:57 pm

Thurs. morning Aug 14 at 1:36 am

Thurs. evening Aug 14 at 9:27 pm

Sat. evening Aug 16 11:05 pm MDT (excellent position)

For more information about GRS crossing times see www.skyandtelescope.com

Neptune is at opposition on Aug 15th in constellation Capricornus. It is currently magnitude 7.8 in brightness.Its disk is only 2.3 arc sec across as seen from telescopes on earth. It is 2.7 billion miles from Earth. In 1846 the existence of the planet and its position was predicted by French mathematician Urban LeVerier who was studying perturbances in the orbit of the planet Uranus. He sent his predictions by mail to Johann Galle at the Berlin Observatory. It arrived five days later on Sept. 23, 1846. John Galle observed the planet Neptune later that evening.

Uranus is in constellation Aquarius. It is currently magnitude +5.8 in brightness and the disk is 3.7 arc sec across. It is 1.8 billion miles away.

Meteors

The Perseid meteor shower peaks in the early morning on Tues. Aug 12. The moon sets at 1:43 am which is fortunate as the best meteor observing period will be about 2 am to 4:30 am. The usual estimate at the peak of the Perseid meteors is 60 to 100 per hour from a dark sky location. Only the very brightest ones will be be visible from light polluted urban areas. For more information about meteors and how to view them see www.amsmeteors.org and the Astroleague's meteor club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/meteor/metrcl.html

Comets

Look for comet C/2007 W1 Boattini early in the morning before moonrise as the week begins. It is about magnitude +8 and the coma is about 12 arc minutes across so it may be seen in binnoculars, finders, and small telescopes. Bright moonlight interferes with our observations of comets most of this week. For sky charts and more information about comets see www.skyhound.com or www.aerith.net Also, checkout the Astroleague's comet observing club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/comet/comet.htm

Summary

This week is a good time to observe craters and other features on the moon, to view Jupiter's great red spot, and to watch the annual Perseid meteor shower. For more information on how to observe some of the fascinating objects in our universe, attend a meeting at a local astronomical society in your area. There are 297 astronomy societies across the United States so there is probably one near you. Check www.astroleague.org for more information. If you happen to be in Colorado front range area, stop at next the Longmont Astronomy Club meetings and say hi! See www.longmontastro.org

The following is a discussion of some of the astronomical objects that may
be seen up in the sky this week, Aug 3 to Aug 9, 2008.

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You may subscribe at the iTunes store (640x480 pixels, 85 megabytes) or download a HD 720P high resolution version of this astronomy video from the Astroleague website (1280x1024 pixels, 280 megabytes). NOTE - uploaded incorrect low res version; that has been corrected Aug 7, 2008 9 pm - VR

International Space Station

The ISS makes some bright passes over the Denver area each night this week
through Friday.
Sun. Aug 3 at 9:45 pm ISS appears in the NW and disappears in the earth shadow in 9:49 pm in the east (reaches magnitude -2.2)

Mon.Aug 4 at 8:36 pm ISS appears in the north-northwest and disappears at
8:41pm in the east (reaches magnitude -0.6)


at 10:11 pm it appears in the
west-northwest and disappears in west-southwest into the earth shadow at
10:14 pm (reaches magnitude -0.8)

Tues Aug 5 at 9:02 pm it appears in the
northwest and disappears at 9:07 pm in the east-southeast (reaches
magnitude -2.3)

Wed Aug 6 at 9:28 pm ISS appears in west-northwest and
disappears in the south into the earth shadow at 9:32 pm (magnitude -0.9)

Thurs Aug 7 at 8:18 pm it appears in the northwest and disappears in the
southeast at 8:24 pm (magnitude -0.4)

Fri Aug 8 at 8:44 pm it appears in
the west-northwestand disappears at 8:49 pm in the south-southeast
(magnitude -0.5).

Check www.heavens-above.com for times that the ISS is
visible over your location.

Sun

On Sunday Aug 3, 2008 sunrise is at 6:03 am sunset is at 8:14 pm MDT>

On Saturday Aug 9, 2008 sunrise is at 6:09 am sunset is at 8:07 pm MDT

As of Sunday evening there are no active regions visible on the solar
disk.

For more information about the sun and space weather see www.swpc.noaa.gov

Moon

On Sunday the moon is at lunation 2.7 and will appear as a thin crescent
visible low in the west near the planet Mars

Mon Aug 4 Lunation 3: Endymion, Cleomedes, Mare Crisium, Picard,
Vendelinus, Petavius, Petavius Wall, Furnerius

Tues Aug 5 Lunation 4: Atlas, Macrobius, Proclus, Palus Somni, Messier,
Messier A, Fabricius

Wed Aug 6 lunation 5: Lacus Mortis, Posidonius, Mare Tranquillitatis,
Theophilus, Mare Nectaris, Fracastorius, Piccolomini

Thurs Aug 7 lunation 6: Aristoteles, Eudoxus, Mitchel, Mare Serenitatis,
Plinius, Cyrillus, Catharina, Gemma Frisius, Maurolycus

Fri Aug 8 lunation 7: First quarter moon at 2:20 pm MDT. Cassini, Cassini
A, Aristillus, Mons Piton, Montes Alpes, Vallis Alpes, Autolycus, Palus
Putredinis, Mons Hadley, Manilius, Mare Vaporum, Hipparchus, Albategnius

Sat Aug 9 Lunation 8: Lunar1 targets: Mare Frigoris, Mare Imbrium,
Copernicus, Bullialdus. Longomontanus

Planets

Venus, Mars, and Saturn are all very low and difficult to see in the bright western sky after sunset. Look for them with binnoculars around 8:40 pm

Jupiter is still in great position for viewing. It may be seen the
twilight in the southeast after sunset. Around 11 pm it is nearly
straight south and may be easily found as it is the brightest object
visible at that time.

The great red spot crosses the center of the disk at the following times
this week: Monday morning Aug 4 at 3:20 am (very low) Monday evening Aug
4 at 11:12 pm (excellent)

Thursday morning Aug 7 at 00:50 am Thursday evening Aug 7 at 8:40 pm

Saturday morning Aug 9 at 2:28 am (low) Saturday evening Aug 9 at 10:19 pm

Use a high magnification eyepiece and a light blue filter to increase
contrast and make the giant spot more visible.

Tues morning Aug 5, Jupiter's moon Io transits the disk starting at 2:26 am followed by its shadow at 3:04 am MDT

Thursday evening Aug 7, Europa may be seen crossing the disk from 10:21 pm to 11:05 pm MDT

For more information about Jupiter red spot and moon transits see
www.skyandtelescope.com

Neptune is in constellation Capricornus and is at opposition next week on
Friday Aug 15. It is magnitude +7.8 in brightness. On Thursday it is
located 9 arc minutes south of star 42 Capricorni. Neptune is currently
2.7 billion miles from Earth. Its disk is 2.3 arc sec across as seen by a
telescope here on earth.

Comets

Easiest to find comet this week is C/2007W1 (Boattini). It is magnitude
8.1 in brightness so you can see using your finder or binoculars. It is
beautiful to view through your scope and is quite recognizable as its coma
is around 11 or so arc minutes across. It is in the constellation Aries
so look for it before morning twilight begins (around 4:30 am).

A bit more difficult to find is the second comet discovered
Boattini , C/2008J1 (Boattini). It is
magnitude +10.5 and located 4 degrees southeast of Polaris in
constellation Cepheus on Aug 9. The coma is about 5 arc minutes across.

C/2006 OF2 (Broughton) is in constellation Perseus. It is magnitude +11
and coma is 2 arc minute across. Use imaging techniques as the coma may be
difficult to recognize. Best time to locate it is in the early morning as
well.

Look for C/2007 N3 (Lulin) early in the week just after moonset in the
constellation Sagittarius. The comet is magnitude +11.6 and the coma is
1.5 arc minute across. Use imaging techniques as the coma may be difficult
to recognize.

For charts and more information about comets see cometchasing.skyhound.com and aerith.net

Meteors

The Perseid meteor shower intensifies this week and will provide a great
show from dark sky locations. Best time to watch for them is in the early
morning say 2 to 4:30 am. The Perseid meteor shower began July 27th, will
peak on Aug 12, and continues through Aug 24. Perseid meteors are usually
quite bright, fast moving, and occasionally leave trains that are visible
for a second or two.

Meteoroids are dust and small debris from a comet which continues along
the orbital path. When the debris strikes the Earth's atmosphere at very
high speed a shock wave is created in front of the debris body by rapid
compression of the air in front of it (ram pressure). This shockwave heats
the air and produces the streak of light we observe here on earth which
are called meteors. The heat from the highly compressed air in front of
the meteor quickly melts the surface and is removed by air flowing over it
by an ablation process. If the meteors observed here on earth are from the
same debris cluster, their movement across the sky will all point back to
a common point called the radiant.

The Perseid meteor shower is caused by from debris left by comet Swift-
Tuttle.The radiant is currently two degrees south of the double cluster,
NGC 869/884.

For more information about meteors see www.amsmeteors.org

Summary

To learn more about the many fascinating objects you may observe, stop by
a meeting your local astronomy clubs such as the Longmont Astronomical Society
see www.longmontastro.org for upcoming meetings and other events.

The following is a discussion of a few astronomical objects to see up in the sky this week, July 27 to August 2, 2008.

This Week in Astronomy History

On July 29, 1958 President Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. On July 30th, 1971 Apollo 15 landed near Hadley Rille on the Earth's moon.

International Space Station

The ISS is visible in skies over Denver in the late evening this week. The passes are low in the northwest and visible for only a couple minutes or less. Brightest passes are on Thurs at 10:31 pm, Fri at 10:29 pm, and Saturday at 9:20 pm.
Check www.heavens-above.com for times specific to your location.

Sun

Sunday July 27 sunrise is 5:57 am and sunset is 8:21 pm MDT

Saturday Aug 2 sunrise is 6:02 am and sunset is 8:15 pm MDT

(for those of us at 40 degrees north latitude)

There are no active regions visible on the solar disk as of Sunday (July 27)
For more information about the Sun and current solar activity check www.swpc.noaa.gov

Moon

As the week begins the Moon is at lunation 25. It is new on Aug 1 at 4:12 am. It is at lunation 1.7 on Saturday.

Planets

If you have a clear view to west Saturday evening you might try to spot the thin crescent Moon, Venus, Mars, and Saturn around 8:45 pm.

This week look for planet Jupiter in the sky toward the south as soon as it is dark. It is easy to find as it is the brightest object visible that time of the evening. It is in constellation Sagittarius aka "the tea pot" and is quite bright at magnitude -2.5 . As viewed from a telescope on earth, the diameter is 46.6 arc sec across.

The Great Red Spot is a giant storm which may have been raging in the atmosphere of Jupiter for hundreds of years. Giovanni Cassini observed a spot on Jupiter in 1665 although the observational records are not conclusive that it is the same spot visible today. Its reddish color was first noted in the 1800s.

For observers in the Denver area, the spot is visible at the following times this week:
Mon July 28 at 2:35 am>
Mon July 28 at 10:26 pm
Wed July 30 at 4:13 am
Thurs July 31 at 0:04 am (Excellent position)
Sat Aug 2 at 1:42 am
Sat Aug 2 at 9:33 pm

For more information about observing Jupiter's red spot see
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/planets/Transit_Times_o...

You may also view Jupiter's moons moving across the disk. Io transits July 29 around 0:40 am followed by its shadow at 1:09 am; Egress is at 2:56 am.
On July 31st Europa's shadow begins to transit across the disk at 9:10 pm; Europa egresses at 10:50 pm.

For information about transit times of Jupiter's moons see http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/objects/planets/3307071.html

Comets

Comets are sometimes called 'dirty ice-balls' and contain frozen material or volatiles that change from a solid to gaseous state when heated. A comet's atmosphere or 'coma' is formed from frozen gas which vaporizes and drags small dust grains into the surrounding space.

C2007 W1 Boattini is in constellation Aries, It is magnitude 7.7 in brightness and its coma is 10 arc minutes across. Recent images show a tail.

15P Finley is in constellation Taurus. It is magnitude 10.3 in brightness.

C2008 J1 Boattini is in constellation Cepheus, magnitude is 10.3

C2007 N3 Lulin is in constellation Sagitarrius, magnitude 11.9

C2007 G1 LINEAR is in constellation Lupus, magnitude 11.3

C2006 OF2 Broughton is in constellation Perseus, magnitude is 11.5

For finder charts and more information about comets see Seiichi Yoshida's comet pages at www.aerith.net
Check out the Astroleague Comet Club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/comet/comet.htm

Asteroids

3 Juno is in constellation Ophiuchus
11 Parthenope is constellation Capricornus
Check out the Astroleague Asteroid Club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/asteroid/astrclub.html

Dark Sky Objects

Around 11 pm, The constellation Sagittarius is directly south and in prime viewing position. Above the spout of the teapot locate Messier 8, the Lagoon Nebula. The lagoon is a oval cloudlike patch that may be seen naked eye in a dark sky location. A bright open cluster called NGC 6530 provides a background sprinkle of stars in the northeastern portion. The luminscent glow of this impressive emission nebula is divided in two by a dark broad lane of dust. It is estimated to be 4100 light years distant.

Slew about 1.5 degrees north of the Lagoon and a few arc minutes to the west and you will come across the Trifid Nebula, Messier 20. Put on a UHC or OIII filter and view this relatively bright nebula which is divided unequally by 3 radial dark lanes. It is marvelous to photograph as it is a wonderful color combination of an open cluster, a bluish reflection nebula in the north and a reddish emission nebula in the south.

Meteor Showers

The Perseid meteor shower began on July 17, peaks Saturday Aug 12, and ends Aug 24. The Delta Aquarids meteor shower is quite active this week as well. Also, the sporadic rate increases this time of year . (Sporadic meteors are those not associated with a particular radiant). The best time to look for meteors is about 2 am to 4:30 am. About 25 or so per hour may be visible in dark early morning skies this week.

For more information about observing meteor showers see http://www.amsmeteors.org/lunsford/
You may also be interested in the Astroleague's Meteor club http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/meteor/metrcl.html

Summary

This week you can view the giant red spot and watch shadows from Jupiter's moons move across its upper atmosphere. If you have a 10 inch or larger telescope you can see some faint comets and asteroids. You may also view some bright nebula and dust lanes and look for meteors in the early morning sky.

The Weekend Under the Stars at Fox Park, Wyoming sponsored by the Laramie and Cheyenne Astronomy Clubs begins this Thursday.

See Cheyenne Astronomy Club website at http://home.bresnan.net/~curranm/ for more information.

Discussion of some astronomical objects that may be seen during the week of July 20 to July 26, 2008.

You may subscribe at the itunes store (640x480 pixels, 55 megabytes) or download a HD 720P high resolution version of this astronomy video from the Astroleague website (1280x1024 pixels, 174 megabytes).

International Space Station

The International Space Station makes some bright passes over the Denver area early in the week.
On Sunday July 20 at 4:05 am the ISS appears in the NW and disappears at 4:11 am in the southeast. (magnitude -2.5)
On Sunday evening at 10:06 pm the ISS appears at 10:06 pm in the west and disappears in the north-northeast at 10:11 pm MDT (magnitude 0.0)
On Monday July 21st it appears at 8:55pm in the west-southwest and disappears in the northwest at 9:00 pm MDT (magnitude -2.2)
On Tue July 22 it appears at 9:18 pm in the west and disappears in the north-northeast at 9:23 pm (magnitude 0.1)
Other passes this week are much dimmer, low and quite brief. Check www.heavens-above.com for times specific to your location.

Sun

On Sunday July 20 sunrise is at 5:51 am and sunset is at 8:27 pm On Saturday July 26 sunrise is at 5:56 am and sunset is at 8:22 pm MDT For more information about the Sun see www.swpc.noaa.gov

Moon

As the week begins, the moon is at lunation 18.
It is in 3rd quarter on Fri July 25 at 12:42 pm.
It ends the week at lunation 24.
Thirty nine years ago this Sunday (July 20, 1969), Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the Moon's Sea of Tranquility.

Planets

You may be able to spot the planet Venus just barely above the western horizon around 9pm in constellation Cancer. It is currently magnitude -3.8. Around 9:30 pm you can see Mars and Saturn very low and nearly straight west in the constellation Leo. The semidiameter of Mars is 4.2 arc sec and it is +1.7 magnitude in brightness. Saturn is magnitude +1.2 in brightness and the semidiameter is 16.4 arc sec.

The planet Jupiter may be seen low in the southeast in the constellation Sagittarius as the sky darkens in the early evening. It is magnitude -2.6 in brightness and the semidiameter is 46.9 arc sec. The great red spot crosses the center of Jupiter at the following times this week:

Mon morning July 21 at 1:39 am
Mon evening July 21 at 9:31 pm
Wed morning July 23 at 3:17 am
Wed evening July 23 at 11:09 pm (excellent)
Fri morning July 25 at 3:55 am (low)
Sat morning July 26 at 00:46 am (excellent)
Sat evening July 26 at 8:38 pm (low)

On Monday July 21st, Jupiter's moon Io starts its transit across the disk at 10:55 pm followed by its shadow at 11:14 pm. Transit ends around 01:12 am.

Comets

Here are some comets to locate in the evening sky before the moon rises. C/2008 J1 Boattini is in constellation Cepheus and is magnitude +10.2
C/2007 N3 Lulin is in constellation Sagittarius and is magnitude +11.8?
C/2007 G1 Linear is in constellation Lupus and is magnitude 11.3
C/2007 W1 Boattini is in constellation Aries but the Moon may make it difficult to spot.

Meteor Showers

The annual Perseid meteor shower continues this week. Unfortunately the moon will obscure most of them, though a few of the brighter ones may be visible. The Perseid meteor shower began on July 17, peaks on Aug 12, and continues through Aug 24. Best time to view meteors is in early morning, about two to three hours before sunrise. See www.amsmeteors.org for more info. Also checkout the Astroleague Meteor Club at http://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/meteor/metrcl.html

Summary

This week you can see the International Space Station, take a look at Jupiter's Great Red Spot, view some comets, and maybe some meteors. Join the Longmont Astronomical Society www.longmontastro.org or other astronomy club near you to learn more about the many great objects visible in the night sky.