July, August and September are the months that stargazers love most for the simple reason that there is so much to investigate. This is largely because the direction of the center of the Milky Way galaxy lies at the confluence of three constellations visible in the early evening – Sagittarius with its fanciful teapot shape, Scorpius tracing a celestial hook, and Ophiuchus, a relatively large, less showy neighbor.
Ninety minutes after sunset, face south. Scorpius, Sagittarius and Ophiuchus will lie directly in front of you standing above the horizon. Take time to take it all in. Then carefully explore the region, teasing out its many features nearly lost in the background glow of the galaxy.
All this commotion exists because you are looking at the densest portion of the Milky Way, filled with 80% of all its stars, packed with both bright and dark nebulae, and loaded with recently formed star clusters. This all adds up to something very intriguing for the unaided eyes of curious skywatchers.
When you are at a dark sky site such as an overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway or a state park, make time to investigate this area of the sky. Be sure to bring binoculars to see even more. Enjoy!
The story above first appeared in our July / August 2025 issue.
