Constellations continue trek across sky

My how time flies, even if you aren't having fun. The constellations are moving westward and the Sun is moving south toward the Autumnal Equinox, the first day of autumn, on Sept. 23.

Have you noticed the sunlight on the floor beneath any south-facing window has been creeping across the floor, extending itself further into the room?

Leo, a constellation of spring has left the evening sky, the three-star Summer Triangle is high overhead, and Pegasus, the Flying Horse -- a constellation of autumn -- is now above the eastern horizon.

We won't discuss Orion, the King of Winter now rising in the east in the early morning.

Another name for Pegasus is "The Great Square," which when standing high in the south it will look like. However, now, as it is rising, it looks like a giant diamond standing up on its bottom point.

Look east at about 9 p.m. local time for the four stars that make up the square, or diamond if you prefer. Directly above it is Cygnus, the Swan, to its left is the giant "W" shape of Cassiopeia, and streaming off of its northern point are the two lines of stars making up the constellation Andromeda.

I like seeing Pegasus back in the sky because that means our old friend, the Andromeda Galaxy is visible once again. Andromeda can be viewed with just the eyes, but it must be from a very, very dark-sky place.

It will look like a very small, faint, smudge of light. Through binoculars or a telescope it will look like a larger smudge of light. It is the farthest thing humans can see with just their eyes alone, about 2.5 million light years.

To find the galaxy, start at the corner of Pegasus and follow the lines of stars out for two stars. Look at the distance between the lines and go up (west) about that same distance and look for a smudge.

Andromeda is another island universe like our own Milky Way and in about five billion years the two are going to crash into each other. But I wouldn't worry about it. The space in the two is so large that they will pass right through each other.

For the next few weeks, well, in fact the next few months we will be able to observe a plethora of planets. Ranging from the early evening to the early morning the planets Mercury, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter and Venus will be in sight.

A little more difficult to locate, but still within our view are the outer ice giant planets Neptune and Uranus. In addition, while totally beyond our view, but still there is our old friend Pluto.

Right now, if you are quick, you might spot tiny Mercury in the evening about a half hour after sunset just above the western horizon. A clear, unobstructed horizon will be necessary as will a pair of binoculars. Mercury can be observed as a tiny, bright, dot in the sky.

If you are having a difficult time finding it, tonight, Aug. 27, look for the two-day old moon which is about two binocular fields of view to the planet's left.

On the evening of Aug. 30, use the moon to find the asteroid Ceres. It is a small, bright speck above and slightly right of the moon in the same binocular field of view.

Ceres was the first asteroid discovered, but has since been reclassified as a dwarf planet. It is the smallest of the five officially recognized objects in that group.

Follow the moon on Aug. 31, and find it right in the middle of Mars and Saturn, Mars being the one below the moon.

SKYWATCH: First quarter moon, Tuesday, Sept. 2.

NEXT WEEK: More moon and planets and more astronomical blathering.