This month starts with Jupiter and Mars in the west at dusk. Jupiter is slowly leaving the evening sky and is low enough to signal that its exit will be soon. As Jupiter approaches the feet of Gemini, Mercury comes up to join it about one week into the month. Mercury quickly leaves Jupiter behind. By the 13th, Jupiter is mostly lost in the sunset. Mercury is passing Mebsuta, a star whose name is Arabic for “the outstretched one”. That refers to ancient Arabian sky watchers seeing a giant lion spanning the sky. About the same time, Mars is ready to pass Regulus in Leo.
To start the second half of June, Mars proceeds underneath Leo’s belly while Mercury is heading out of Gemini from the Pollux side. Jupiter is on the other side of the sun on the 24th. At the end of June, Mercury is starting to turn around at Cancer. It will pass very close to Asellus Australis, the southern donkey star, on July 4.
Spica in Virgo and Arcturus in Bootes are two bright stars near the meridian as dusk begins this month. Antares in Scorpius and Altair in Aquila are rising.
Saturn rises a little after midnight. Its next to the southern fish in Pisces. Midway between midnight and dawn, Venus comes up. The love goddess starts June in the part of Pisces where the two fish are joined. The planet’s at greatest elongation on the 1st, nearly 46 degrees from the sun. Venus is at aphelion on the 12th 0.73 astronomical units from the sun. For the middle of the month, the planet moves just over the head of Cetus the sea monster. As June ends, Venus is getting into Taurus and will shine beautifully somewhat close to the Pleiades and Hyades.
The moon’s circumstances this month
The moon’s at first quarter on the 3rd, it’s full on the 11th, last quarter is on the 18th, and new moon is on the 25th.
Lunar apogee is on the 7th at kilometers. Perigee is on the 23rd at 363,200 kilometers.
The moon goes south over the equator on the 4th, reaches southern lunistice on the 11th at 28.4 degrees, crosses the equator going north on the 18th, and northern lunistice is on the 25th at 28.4 degrees.
The moon passes Mars on the 1st and Regulus on the 2nd. It passes Spica on the 6th. Then it passes Antares on the 10th. A Saturn-moon pairing occurs on the 19th. This month’s Venus-moon pairing is on the 22nd. An unseen Jupiter-moon pairing happens on the 25th when the moon is new. The moon’s near Pollux on the 26th and then Mercury on the 27th. Regulus gets a moon visit again on the 29th. Finally, Mars will be in a different place in the sky for it, otherwise just as it started June, the red planet gets a moon visit on the 30th.
The moon’s visit to Antares on the 10th comes with an occultation. Australia, New Zealand, and a big swath of the southern Pacific get the view. The moon’s second pass by Mars this month comes with an occultation for Pacific Ocean areas south of Central America and west of northern South America.
Solstice
Earth’s June solstice is on the 21st.
Daytime meteor shower
The Arietids meteor shower is considered a daytime storm. You could actually see some of the meteors in the dawn as the radiant in Aries is rising already. But for most of the time it’s up, it’s daytime. You have a reasonable chance of detecting meteors by listening to the radio. Tune to an FM frequency with no signal and listen for a long time. If you suddenly hear a station and it fades in less than a minute, you have probably heard something via meteor-induced skip. Some ham radio operators try to make long distance contacts during meteor showers. They very quickly give their identifying information and hope someone else responds just as quickly. They have to be fast and brief. The meteor’s ionization trail dissipates very fast.
Two asteroid at aphelion
By coincidence, two asteroids are at aphelion on the 7th. Melpomene will be 2.8 astronomical units from the sun. June will be 3.35 a.u. away. Both are in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.