The visual binary, Delta-1 Lyrae (HD 175426, the blue star) and Delta-2 Lyrae (HD 175588, the red star), in the constellation Lyra. With the the nearby star system CCDM J18545+3654BC (the faint star just above Delta-2 Lyrae in the image), the three stars may actually be a triple star system.
Lyra and its bright star Vega stand some 15° S of the zenith at midnight BST tonight and are charted in detail above. Vega, in fact, is the fifth brightest star in the entire sky and the third brightest ever visible from Britain, behind Sirius and Arcturus. The latter is the most conspicuous star in the W at nightfall where it serves as a guide to our two evening planets. Look 30° below Arcturus to find Saturn 5° above Spica in Virgo, and about 15° to their right for Mars. Read more
Lyra is a constellation. Its name is Latin for the lyre, a stringed musical instrument used in classical antiquity and later. Lyra was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations recognised by the International Astronomical Union today. Read more