Link to 2020 article
During August, as Mercury makes a morning appearance, brilliant Sirius, the sky’s brightest star, makes its first morning (heliacal) rising just before sunrise. For the latitude on the diagram, about 41.7 degrees, this is August 14, 2019. For locations farther south, this occurs days earlier and later for latitudes farther north.
August 29: Now appearing in the darker morning sky, Sirius is visible with Betelgeuse and Procyon.
Sirius, the Dog Star, is sometimes called the Nile Star as its heliacal rising historically coincided with the flooding of the Nile River. The Dog Days of Summer (in the northern hemisphere) occur, coincidentally, during August when Sirius and Procyon, the Little Dog Star, appear in the eastern sky before sunrise.
Update: August 9, Mercury is low in the northeast. First located with a binocular then observed without its assistance.
Mercury is at greatest elongation on August 9. Because Mercury is closer to the sun than Earth, we see Mercury appear in either the morning or evening sky around the time the sun rises or sets. It appears in the sky earlier each morning or stays there later each night. It reaches its greatest separation from the sun and then seems to reverse its direction, moving back into sunlight, only to repeat the process a few months later at the other horizon and sky setting.
As Mercury moves back toward the sun in August, it is lower in the sky each morning at about the same time. Sirius appears higher in the sky each morning at the same time. And Mercury gets brighter as it appears nearer to the sun. As Sirius appears higher, it seems to brighten because it gets above the thicker atmosphere that tends to diminish the brightness of celestial objects. They are not quite the same brightness, but appear at the same altitude around August 19.
To locate the planet and the star, find a clear horizon in the east-northeast and east-southeast. Start looking for Mercury and Sirius about 30 minutes before sunrise. A binocular may help in viewing them. Mercury is low in the east-northeast, about 10 degrees up. Sirius is very low, in the east-southeast about 3 degrees up when first visible. Sirius may twinkle wildly this low in the sky. To be sure you have Sirius, don’t confuse it with Procyon in the east and a little higher. Orion is higher in the sky and its three belt stars make an imaginary pointer that take us to the area to find Sirius. Reddish Betelgeuse is higher in the sky, Sirius, Procyon, and Betelgeuse make nearly an equilateral triangle known as the Winter Triangle.
Sirius’ heliacal rising occurs every year about this time. This year the event is a little more interesting because a bright planet is in the sky.
Can you tell the time for Heliacal rising of Sirius for Athens Greece. Thanking you
My estimate is August 11 to make your first attempt. Locate a clear horizon as it’ll be low. Take a binocular. Start about 45 minutes before sunrise. Many local factors, such as fog, may present a challenge. Look then each morning for it. When can you first see it without a binocular?
Could you tell me the time for Heliacal rising of Sirius for Toronto Canada (North America Eastern time)?
Start looking on August 15, about 45 minutes (5:37 a.m. EDT) before sunrise; that’s 6:22 a.m. EDT. by my estimate. My estimate is that you’ll start seeing Sirius with a binocular on August 17, 5:39 a.m. It’ll be very low in the east-southeast near the horizon. Continue to look for Sirius for about 10-15 minutes as the sky brightens and the star appears higher in the sky. Use Orion’s belt stars as a pointer to get an approximate location for Sirius. As you look through a binocular, gently move it along the horizon point around the spot that you estimate from the belt stars. Do not confuse Sirius with Procyon. This star is above the east direction point. The next day or two you should see Sirius without a binocular, depending on the weather, sky clarity, and such; and the how well you can see the natural horizon without trees or other obstacles. Sunrise changes (later) about one minute each day, so figure that into your viewing time. A viewing spot at the lakefront looking across Lake Ontario give you a great natural horizon, but you could suffer from fog or other effects. Let us know when you first see Sirius!
Hi Jeffrey,
I understand that the ancient Egyptians focused on the Sirius season and celebrated its heliacal rise, the date of which changed as time went on. I know that the founders of America timed the signing of the Declaration of Independence to coincide with the beginning of that season because of its spiritual import.
Nowadays, we have a lot of new-agers shouting about something they seem to have invented called “****’* ****, */*”, which they think was an authentic Egyptian holiday, and they insist that there is special cosmic energy entering our plane that day every year, because they are confused about when the heliacal rising of Sirius is, not understanding that that is what the Egyptians were focusing on.
Do you know if the Egyptians celebrated a “****’* ****” and if so, when? And can you comment on any of the rest of this?
Thanks.
Thanks for your question. As you likely know from reading the posts here, my interests are in observational astronomy, especially what I can see from my backyard with and without a telescope or binocular. Numerology and other such thinking are outside my area of interest.
I edited your original question on the page to remove the specific reference as I don’t want this idea to show my post in an internet search. I gladly decline being part of this conversation.
I will write here that August became in the 8th month in 1752 when the beginning of the new year was moved to January 1. The calendar lost 11 days that year. Additionally, the names of some of the months indicate their order in the original calendar: September (Sept = 7, 7th month), October (Oct = 8, 8th month), November (Nov = 9, 9th month), December (Dec = 10, 10th month). So, if the date is important it’s celebrated in the wrong month and it’s been a “mystical date” for less than 300 years.
A celestial lion is a concept throughout the Middle East, North Africa, and southern Europe.
The sun does not move into Leo until August 11 and leaves on September 17. Regulus, the constellation’s brightest star, is in solar conjunction on August 23.
Here are my notes for the date:
August 8: Thirty minutes before sunrise, Mercury (m =0.2) is over 9° up in the east-northeast and 9.1° to the lower right of Pollux. In the evening, one hour after sunset, the moon (8.0d, 64%), over 28° up in the south-southwest, is 1.9° to the upper right of Graffias (β Sco, m = 2.5). At the same time the moon is over 10° to the upper right of Antares (α Sco, m = 1.0) and nearly 12° to the right of Jupiter.
Can you tell me the day of the heliacal rising of Sirius in Sedona, AZ?
Start looking in the morning (August 9) about 5 a.m. MST. You’ll need a clear horizon. You may need a binocular to see it first. Then try to locate it without optical help. My estimate is August 11 you should be able to see it without optical help and haze at the horizon. Let us know when you see it! (Also look for Mercury in the Northeast. Still not blazingly bright; you make need a binocular to see it.)
Hello – I have been trying all morning to figure out when the heliacal rising of Sirius will be in 2020 (preferably for Cairo, Egypt) for a project I’m working on and I’m having no luck. I cannot find the answer or a working calculator for this online anywhere. Can you help with a source to calculate it or provide me the answer? I’m frustrated beyond belief.
Thank you ever so much!
My estimate is August 6, 2020 for this location. There are many factors affecting its first view. It is essential that there is a clear horizon, no terrestrial obstructions and no clouds near the horizon. Using the factors from this article, https://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/a-real-scorcher-sirius-at-heliacal-rising/ , the sun and Sirius meet those criteria on that date about 42 minutes before sunrise that occurs at 5:17 a.m. local time. The article says helical rising of Sirius occurs when the sun is 8 degrees below the horizon and Sirius is 3 degrees up in the sky. That is very, very low in the sky.
Start looking on August 4 or August 5. A binocular helps with first recognition and then locating Sirius without optical assistance. For novice observers, this will be difficult to see without some practice.
Recently, I saw Jupiter, which is over 2x brighter than Sirius within 3 degrees of the horizon without optical help and without a binocular to initially find it.
Winter is a good time to look in the sky for the relationship and scale of Procyon, Betelgeuse, and Sirius. I use my finger to trace the triangle that the trio makes in the sky. (Bystanders must think that I am making some sign toward the celestial gods when they see me trace shapes in the sky with an extended hand.) When Sirius is not visible, it gives me a good idea of where to look for it by tracing that triangle in the sky. These three stars are low in the eastern sky during winter. During late January, Sirius rises at sunset as seen from mid-northern latitudes. Practice locating it low in the sky while the sky is brightly illuminated. This will help you to locate it near its helical rising.
Finally, in 2020 do not confuse Venus for Sirius when looking for Sirius near its heliacal rising. This brilliant morning star is to the upper left of Betelgeuse. It is the brightest “star” in the sky, much brighter than Sirius. Additionally, Mercury is to the upper left of Procyon at this time. That is why noting the scale and relationship of Sirius, Procyon, and Betelgeuse is important so that the planets do not distract the search for Sirius.