Watch planetary pairing, Perseid meteor shower and more celestial events in August

NASA has shared skywatching highlight for August 2022, which includes planetary pairings in the morning sky, the Perseids meteor shower and the constellation Cygnus flying high in the sky.

August will start with a close conjunction of Mars and the distant ice giant planet Uranus. On August 1, you'll find the tiny, bluish disc of Uranus just northwest of the Red Planet in the morning sky. Grab your binoculars to watch the nice planetary pairing.

On August 15th, you'll find the Moon only a finger's width from Jupiter. The duo will also be making a great pairing through binoculars, and you'll also likely catch a glimpse of the planet's four largest moons - Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.

✨ Spot two planets in the morning sky, gawk at the Perseids meteor shower, and get down with the Cygnus (constellation). Here's what else is up in the night sky this August: https://t.co/P2s1urpEX6 pic.twitter.com/x5Xr19wNwa

— NASA (@NASA) July 29, 2022

Further, Saturn is transitioning from a late night and early morning object to an all-night sight. In mid-August, look southeast around 9 pm to find the ringed planet as a steady, yellowish point of light. According to NASA, it's around this time when Saturn appears its biggest and brightest for the year. By August-end, Jupiter will also rise around 9 pm, joining Saturn in the night sky.

Next up, Perseids, one of the biggest meteor showers of the year, will peak in August. However, all but the brightest Perseids will be washed out by a full moon on the peak night of August 12. Still, if you find yourself outside between midnight and dawn on August 13th, don't forget to look up.

The constellation Cygnus, the swan, will be flying high in the eastern sky after dark in August. T-shaped Cygnus is easy to spot, thanks to its brightest star Deneb, which represents the swan's tail. Look for Deneb as the northernmost of the three bright stars that form the Summer Triangle