Moon Phase:
Last Quarter 2nd
New Moon 10th
First Quarter 18th
Full Moon 25th
Winter Solstice: 21st
Planets:
Evening Sky
Mars is in the northwestern sky after sunset, moving from the constellation Gemini to Cancer in the second week of the month.
Venus: is low in the northwestern twilight sky. The brilliantly shining planet is on the move this month, spending the first two days in Taurus before moving in to Gemini and then near month’s end joining Mars in Cancer.
Morning Sky
Mercury returns to the morning sky in the middle of the month. Look for it low on the east horizon before sunrise in the constellation Taurus.
Saturn is visible high in the western morning sky in the constellation Capricornus.
Jupiter is high overhead in the morning sky in the constellation Aquarius.
Worth a Look:
12th: The two-day old waxing crescent Moon is just below Venus. The thin waxing crescent Moon provides a good opportunity for widefield photographers to capture both Venus and the Moon close to the horizon.
13th: The thin waxing crescent Moon between the red planet Mars and the brilliantly shining Venus in the early evening sky. The Moon is above and to the north (right) of Venus and below and slightly to the west (left) of Mars. With both planets and the Moon close to the horizon, this provides a good opportunity for widefield photographers. 14th: The waxing crescent Moon is to the north (right) and slightly above Mars.
23rd/24th: Mars moves through the well-known open star cluster M44 – the Beehive in the constellation Cancer. Binoculars or a small telescope will show the red planet against a background of the cluster’s stars. Also a good opportunity for photographers.
28th: The waning crescent Moon is beside (to the south or left) of the ringed planet Saturn in the early morning sky.
29th: In the early morning sky, the waning crescent Moon is just below and to the south (left) of the the largest planet in our Solar System, Jupiter.
You can download a star map for June here.
Clear Skies!
References:
Dawes G., Northfield P., Wallace K. (2020). Astronomy 2021 Australia, Quasar Publishing.
Lomb, N. (2020). 2021 Australasian sky guide. Ultimo, NSW: Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences Media.
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