Skywatchers face a rare concentration of astronomical events this month, beginning with the Sturgeon full Moon, which reaches full illumination at 3:54 a.m. ET on Aug. 9. Although the lunar display marks the final full Moon of the Northern Hemisphere’s summer, its brightness will influence several spectacles that follow. Just two days later, Jupiter and Venus—the two brightest planets—will draw within roughly 0.9 degrees of each other in the pre-dawn sky of Aug. 11–12. The pair rises about 2½ hours before sunrise in the east-northeast, offering naked-eye viewing and, through binoculars, a chance to spot Jupiter’s four Galilean moons lined up beside the gas giant. The conjunction is part of a wider six-planet parade that begins around Aug. 10, when Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune span the sky along a predawn arc. While the alignment can be glimpsed throughout the month, astronomers say the best window will be Aug. 17–23, when a waning crescent or new Moon leaves darker conditions; the next opportunity to see all six together will not come until February 2026. Nightfall on Aug. 12–13 brings the annual Perseid meteor shower, which can produce up to 75 meteors an hour under ideal darkness. This year, an 84% waning gibbous Moon is expected to reduce rates to roughly 10–20 meteors per hour, prompting experts to advise viewing after moonset or postponing outings until later in the week when lunar glare subsides. Observers are urged to seek rural locations, allow at least 20 minutes for eyes to adjust and avoid white light to maximize the show.