Today, July 14, is Bastille Day, a French national holiday that commemorates the 1790 FΓͺte de Federation, held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789.
The storming of the medieval fortress and prison in Paris is traditionally considered the start of the French Revolution. The fortress was liberated from its guards in the late afternoon.
On the night of July 14, 1789, wherever it was clear in France, those who observed the sky would have marveled at the summer Milky Way high in the east and been delighted by a beautiful last quarter Moon rising shortly before midnight.
Celebrate Bastille Day around 7:50 p.m. by trying to see Venus and Mercury very close together only three degrees above the western horizon. On Saturday they will be one-half a degree apart and just three degrees above the horizon. Venus is far brighter than Mercury. Look for them with binoculars.
Also enjoy the 10-day-old moon above the pinchers of Scorpius the Scorpion. Mars is to the west (right) of the Moon, and Saturn is to the left of the Moon not far from the bright red star Antares at the heart of Scorpius.
