Late July Evening Sky: Three Small Constellations and the Milky Way

Deborah Byrd, on the EarthSky/Tonight website, wrote about the Summer Triangle of first-magnitude stars Vega in the constellation Lyra, Deneb in Cygnus, and Altair in Aquila.  Her article's focus, though, was the three small and relatively faint constellations found in this region of the sky: Vulpecula (the Fox), Delphinus (the Dolphin), and Sagitta (the Arrow).  Only Sagitta actually resembles what it represents, although there is a pattern of sorts for Delphinus.  I've often been able to find and identify these two tiny constellations...they're situated just to the north (Sagitta) and west (Delphinus) from Altair.  Vulpecula, on the other hand, is an entirely different matter...

I've never identified Vulpecula in the sky, and I wonder how many star-gazers have actually pulled off this challenging feat.  It has no bright stars and is more or less simply a sector cut out of the sky, generally south of Cygnus.  Two of its brightest stars, however, do form a small right triangle with the "head" star of Cygnus (on the other, southern end of the constellation from Deneb).  I'm thinking...if the sky remains clear tonight as it now is...of going out to see if I can make it out, now that I have what I believe to be a good point of reference...

If you want to observe the Milky Way in the night sky, this time of the year is optimal if you happen to live in the northern hemisphere.  It is strong in the constellation Sagittarius and goes northward into the midst of that Summer Triangle, concentrating most densely in the constellation Cygnus.  Because I live in the city, I can't make it out very well, but tonight I also plan to look at it, along with Vulpecula, Sagitta, and Delphinus...

The Summer Triangle, during the evening hours in late July, is rising high in the east.  Directly south of it lies Sagittarius, and it is along this line that you should be able to make out the Milky Way, should weather and your local lighting conditions permit.  The moon, now in a gibbous waning phase, might also be an inhibiting factor in trying to observe the fainter stars...