Skywatch Line for Friday, June 21, through Sunday, June 23, written by Sam Salem
This is Dudley Observatory’s Skywatch Line for Friday, June 21, through Sunday, June 23, written by Sam Salem.
On Friday, Sun rises at 5:17am and sets at 8:37pm; Moon sets at 4:19am and rises at 8:58pm.
On Friday, full Moon occurs at 9:09 p.m. After dark, cover the Moon with your finger to get a better look at the stars around it. The Moon sits barely above the spout of the Sagittarius Teapot, an asterism in the constellation of Sagittarius the Archer. The full Moon will be visible all night. On Saturday, the Moon shines barely below the Teapot’s handle through the evening hours.
The Northern Hemisphere’s longest day falls on the June 20 solstice. Meanwhile, for the Northern Hemisphere, the latest sunsets and latest evening twilights are happening around now. They always come in late June and early July. The year’s latest sunsets always come after the summer solstice. But the exact date of the latest sunset depends on your latitude.
Mars and Saturn are in nice view just before and during early dawn. The highest and easiest is Saturn in the southeast, magnitude 1.1. Its background is dim constellation of Aquarius. Find the Great Square of Pegasus two fists upper left of it, and Fomalhaut sparkling two fists to Saturn’s lower right.
Look for Mars far lower left of Saturn, by a good four or five fists at arm’s length. It’s almost due east. Mars is magnitude 1.9. About a fist above Mars is Alpha Arietis, or Hamal, magnitude 2.0.
Jupiter is emerging into view almost three fists lower left of Mars, shining through the horizon darkness at magnitude –2.0 as dawn brightens.
The constellation of Leo the Lion is mostly a constellation of late winter and spring. But it’s not gone yet. As twilight ends look due west, somewhat low, for Regulus, the constellation’s brightest and now lowest star, the forefoot of the lion stick figure. The Sickle of Leo extends upper right from Regulus. The rest of the Lion’s constellation figure runs for almost three fist-widths to the upper left from the Sickle to his tail tip Denebola, the highest of his stick-figure’s stars.
It’s summer here in the Northern Hemisphere. Watch for the famous Summer Triangle, now ascending in the eastern sky on these late June and July evenings. The Summer Triangle is an asterism, or noticeable pattern of stars. This pattern consists of three bright stars in three separate constellations, Deneb in the constellation Cygnus the Swan, Vega in the constellation Lyra the Harp, and Altair in the constellation Aquila the Eagle.
Watch the Summer Triangle all summer as it shifts higher in the east, then finally appears high overhead in the late northern summer and early northern autumn sky.