Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog

Ephemeris for Tuesday, August 6th.  The sun rises at 6:34.  It’ll be up for 14 hours and 26 minutes, setting at 9:00.  The moon is new today, and won’t be visible.

The Milky Way runs from north to south through the heavens at 11 p.m. You’ll notice that the Milky Way is brighter and broader just above the horizon in the south.  In that glow in the south is a star pattern that looks like a stout little teapot, with a bright stream of the Milky Way rising from the spout, which faces the west. This pattern of stars is the major part of the constellation called Sagittarius.  According to Greek mythology Sagittarius is a centaur with a bow and arrow poised to shoot Scorpius the scorpion to the right.  This centaur is named Chiron, the most learned of the breed, centaurs usually being a rowdy bunch.  The center of the pin wheel of our galaxy lies hidden beyond the stars near the spout of the teapot.

Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Location of the center of the Milky Way behind gas and dust clouds and the Teapot of Sagittarius.

Sagittarius and Scorpius at 11 p.m. on August 6, 2013. Created using Stellarium.