August full moon pairs with Saturn this week

August will be a special month because there are two full moons.

Michele Powers

Jul 31, 2023, 9:12 AM

Updated 431 days ago

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August will be a special month because there are two full moons.  The first one is on Aug. 1 and the next one is Aug. 30. The second one is known as a "blue moon."  Both full moons are called supermoons or perigee moons as well. They will be number 2 and 3 in a series of 4 this year. It’s actually the second one that will be the closest for the year at 222,043 miles.
Saturn will also be joining the moon, rising soon after and pairing nicely through the night with a beautiful display in the pre-dawn sky. If you are up early, look each morning about 45 min to 1 hour before dawn in the west. Both will be lower on the horizon and soon setting. Starting on Aug. 1, Saturn will be about two fists at arm’s length away from the moon. The moon will draw closer and closer to the ringed planet in our sky each morning until Aug 3. That's the closest we will see them together.
It's also time for more meteor showers.  Two meteor showers overlap in late July, The Delta Aquarids are peaking and the Perseids are picking up as we head into August. The Perseids are brighter, the Aquarids not seen very easily. With both becoming more active now, there’s a chance you may just see a couple of “shooting stars” the next few weeks. The full moon will be in the way the next few days but won't be a factor when the Perseids peak in about two weeks.