August 18-21, 2026: Watch the waxing moon pass Scorpius during August evenings. The lunar orb moves from Libra’s claws toward Antares and then to Ophiuchus while waxing through its First Quarter phase.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Venus as an Evening Star
Scorpius
The evening moon passes Scorpius. The waxing moon is in the southern sky during the next few evenings.
Scorpius resembles its namesake, the Scorpion. It also looks like a fishhook or the letter “J.” First, look for red-orange Antares, the arachnid’s brightest star, representing the heart in celestial artwork.
Three stars in a short vertical line, somewhat resembling Orion’s Belt, are to Antares’ upper right. Dschubba, meaning “the forehead” or “the crown,” is the middle star. The pinchers, now identified as Libra’s brightest stars, reach toward the west. Their names, Zubenelgenubi and Zubeneschamali, meaning the southern claw and northern claw, respectively, indicate their earlier association with the Scorpion.
From Antares, Scorpius’ body curves downward toward the horizon and then swings nearly parallel to the division between the sky and ground. At Sargas, the body curves upward to the stellar pair Shaula and Lesath, the “cocked up part of the tail” and the stinger, respectively. While they are not equally bright, these stars are sometimes called the “Cat’s Eyes” in modern star lore.
As the moon moves eastward from night to night, it passes through the evening half phase (First Quarter) on August 19 at 9:46 p.m. Central Time.
The Highlights
Here is what to see an hour after sunset:
• August 18: The crescent moon, 40% illuminated, is nearly 15° above the southwest horizon, 6.4° to the lower left of Zubenelgenubi.
• August 19: The First Quarter moon is 16° above the south-southwest horizon, nearly 13° to Antares’ lower right and 6.9° to the lower right of Pi Scorpii (π Sco), the bright star below Dschubba.
• August 20: The slightly gibbous moon, 59% illuminated, is 18° above the south-southwest horizon, 2.2° to Antares’ lower right. Later tonight — tomorrow evening in that region — the moon occults (eclipses) Antares for sky watchers in southern New Zealand and southern Australia.
• August 21: The moon, 68% illuminated and in front of Ophiuchus, is nearly 20° above the southern horizon. It is 10.3° to the left of Antares and nearly 20° above Shaula and Lesath.
Watch the moon’s eastward motion and its waxing phase as it passes Scorpius.
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