July is a great month to try to spot a planet in the night sky. If you have trouble seeing any of these, grab a pair of binoculars to help you look.
First up, Mercury. It's the one that looks the best right now. Look for it in the northeast sky just before dawn. It should be near the moon as it approaches the horizon.
Next up, Venus and Mars. They are sort of paired up right now from our perspective. Wait about 45 minutes after sunset, then look toward the west to find Venus. It's the brightest planet in the sky right now. Then if you want about another hour, you should be able to see Mars faintly nearby. Mars looks more red in color than anything nearby. You should be able to get a pretty good look at both planets now, but they will actually be closest to each other and to the moon early next week.
Finally, Saturn and Jupiter are also sort of paired up this month from our point of view. If you wait until the end of the month - the 23rd or 24th - you can see these planets near the full moon after sunset. Because of the position of us, the sun, and these planets, July is actually one of the best times to see Saturn and Jupiter! If you're looking for these planets at night, look toward the southeast. If you're looking for them in the hours before dawn, they are higher up in the sky.
Thanks to EarthSky for the great research to help put this post together.
