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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report through July 25th, 2018. Here’s what’s happening in the skies of southern California.

Four bright planets and the moon are available to enjoy during the early evening hours.

The brightest planet, Venus, blazes in the west-southwest after sunset. A telescope can show the planet’s gibbous phase. Even though the orbit of Venus is inside Earth’s orbit, Venus is currently beyond the sun from our point of view, and a small portion of the planet’s daytime side is turned away from us. Later in the summer, Venus will move between the Earth and the Sun, and its phase will then be crescent. Venus sets in the west at about 10:15 p.m.

Jupiter, in the constellation Libra the Scales, gleams in the south in the evening twilight. Use binoculars to see Jupiter’s four largest moons, the Galilean satellites, clustered around the planet’s bright disk. A telescope can reveal Jupiter’s cloud features, arranged in alternating dark belts and bright zones, and oval storms, including the famous Great Red Spot. The Great Red Spot will face west coast observers at 9:00 p.m. on July 18th, 23rd, and 25th. Jupiter sets in the west-southwest at about 1:00 a.m.

Saturn, in the teapot-shaped constellation Sagittarius the Archer, is in the southeast and to the lower left of Jupiter in the early evening. A telescope may be used to view Saturn’s beautiful system of rings, and several of its numerous moons. Saturn is highest in the south when it crosses the meridian at 11:00 p.m. It sets five hours later.

Orange planet Mars is eye catching when it appears in the southeast sky, to the lower left of Saturn, by about 9:30 p.m. At the end of the month, Mars will be at its closest point to the Earth since 2003, and the planet now appears about as large as it ever does through a telescope. It also is noticeably brighter than Jupiter, and for the next month Mars appears as the second brightest planet. Mars is best placed for telescopic viewing between 11:00 p.m. and 4:00 a.m., and it crosses the meridian at 2:00 a.m. A telescope may not reveal much detail on the planet as its surface has been obscured by a global dust storm that started at the end of May. In recent days, however, the storm has showed signs of subsiding, and some of the planet’s dark markings are becoming visible again as the dust slowly settles.

The moon’s phase changes from crescent to first quarter on the 19th, and then it is waxing gibbous before reaching full on the 27th. The moon is above Jupiter on the 20th, the orange star Antares in Scorpius the Scorpion on the 22nd, and Saturn on the 24th.

On Wednesday, July 25th, at 4:39 a.m., PDT, the scheduled launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base, and the re-firing of the rocket’s reusable first stage as it maneuvers to land on a barge off the California coast a few minutes later, should be visible in the western sky from much of southern California. This launch is to place 10 Iridium communication satellites into orbit. The direction of the early dawn lighting is not expected to produce a spectacular light show. The rocket exhaust plumes as the engines fire, however, should be easily visible. Binoculars are recommended to view the launch.

The finest evening appearance of the International Space Station over Los Angeles will occur on Saturday the 21st., from 9:28 to 9:34 p.m., PDT. The Space station, appearing nearly as bright as Venus, will cross the sky from the southwest to the northeast. It is directly overhead at 9:34 p.m., when it is 256 miles away.

Free views of the Sun during the day and of the moon and planets at night are available to the public in clear weather through Griffith Observatory’s telescopes from Tuesday through Sunday, before 9:30 p.m. Check our website for the schedule. The next free public star party on the grounds of Griffith Observatory, hosted by the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Sidewalk Astronomers, and the Planetary Society, will take place on Saturday, July 21st, from 2:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Follow the Sky Report on Twitter for updates of astronomy and space-related events.

From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook, and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com.