The Night Sky - June 2013

June nights evoke thoughts of the 'Summer Triangle' stars Deneb, Altair and Vega as well as the Milky Way stretching through Cygnus, Lyra and Aquila. June also hosts the shortest night as the Summer Solstice on 21st June marks the point when the sun is at its greatest angular distance north of the celestial equator. Thus reducing the hours of darkness and increasing the hours od daylight.

Highlights of the Month:

• 1-4th: Mercury, Venus and Jupiter form a straight line in the twilight sky
• 5-7th: Asteroid Ceres passes just below the star Pollux in Gemini
• 10th: A close grouping of Mercury, Venus and a very thin crescent Moon
• 18th: A Gibbous Moon and Saturn in Virgo
• 21st: Summer Solstice

Information collated from Jodrell Bank and Astronomy Now magazine