Gemini on the rise, before the Sun

Event Date: July 27th
Time: 5:30 AM


Brief

   A little earlier this month, I showed Orion rising as a morning constellation shortly before Sunrise, reminding us that we are nearing Summer's mid-point.  We are a little close to that now, happening in about a week.  Along with Orion, which I include the stick-figure for today shown a little higher in the sky before Sunrise, we have another constellation rising in the east-northeast, which we haven't seen much of since May evenings: Gemini!  The twin stars of Castor and Pollux are the only ones to see easily with atmospheric pollution washing out the other dimmer ones.  Here they are below, with Orion seen to the right.  Venus and Jupiter continue to separate above them further west, with Aldebaran not far away.

click on images to enlarge: courtesy of Starry Night Pro Plus, version 6.4.3, by Simulation Curriculum Corp.

Detailed

 Castor rises a little less than two hours before the Sun, while Pollux rises about 30 minutes after Castor.  Since these stars are far enough north, a little moreso than the Sun at the June solstice, it didn't take long since that day for them to be visible.  As the Sun continues to move a little more south each day and the stars rise about four minutes earlier each day, we will clearly see them low above the horizon in a couple of weeks.  With Sunset also happening a little later each day as a result of moving further from the east-northeast azimuth, it will also give more dark time to see these two 1st-magnitude stars.
   With constellations such as Orion and Gemini visible rising west of the Sun, it gives us a preview of our late-fall/early-winter evening sky.  Granted, the Sun will be on the other side of the sky when that comes and we will see the constellations for several hours in long darkness.  Enjoy them now for the short time that they can be seen this morning, and a few minutes longer each day.