Asteroid Vesta is moving through Scorpius, standing just a few degrees from the compact globular cluster M80 this evening.
Vesta enters Scorpius this month, making a stunning near pass of Nu Scorpii. Credit: Astronomy: Roen Kelly
Look to Scorpius this evening, where the asteroid 4 Vesta floats near the globular cluster M80 close to the Scorpion’s claws.
Viewing is best looking southwest starting around 30–60 minutes after sunset and lasting another hour or so, ending as the region sinks toward the horizon and the asteroid’s faint light becomes difficult to see through the thicker air there. Look southwest an hour after sunset to locate Antares, the red heart of the Scorpion, then look with binoculars or a telescope 2° to its lower right to find magnitude 2.9 Sigma (σ) Scorpii. Vesta lies about 5.5° north (to the upper right) of Sigma, with M80 about halfway between them.
Vesta is now roughly 8th magnitude, while M80 is slightly brighter at magnitude 7.3. The ball of stars stretches some 10’ on the sky and is often compared to the faint circular nucleus of a comet. M80 is one of the most densely packed globulars orbiting the Milky Way, with some 100,000 stars calling the cluster home.
Sunrise: 6:54 A.M.
Sunset: 6:46 P.M.
Moonrise: 1:44 P.M.
Moonset: 10:22 P.M.
Moon Phase: Waxing crescent (38%)
*Times for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset are given in local time from 40° N 90° W. The Moon’s illumination is given at 12 P.M. local time from the same location.
For a look ahead at more upcoming sky events, check out our full Sky This Week column.