Almanako -- Almanac of Astronomical Events

As the stars come out at the start of June, Venus lights up the western sky in Gemini. From the far northern hemisphere, Pollux will be above and left of the planet; Castor will be above and right. Closer to the equator, both stars will be above and to the right; Pollux will be the higher of the two. In the southern hemisphere, both stars will be to the right; Pollux will be the higher of the two stars. Antares is rising on the opposite side of the sky.

Regulus is one of the bright stars above Venus. The ruddy Mars is close by. About half way from there to Virgo's bright star Spica is Saturn.

Mars is approaching Regulus and is in conjuction 1 degree north of the star on the 6th. Over the next few nights, Mars will pass Regulus and head toward Saturn while Venus exits Gemini, also on the way to Saturn. Ever brilliant Venus is on the doorstep of the dim constellation Cancer when the moon passes by on the 14th and 15th. Watch Venus whiz by the Beehive Cluster on the 19th and 20th. Venus is about half way between the Beehive and Regulus at the end of the month. At that time, Mars will be half way between Regulus and Saturn.

Jupiter rises after midnight, right about the time Saturn sets. Uranus will be within a half degree north of Jupiter on the 6th. The moon nearby will interfere with finding the seventh planet at that time though. Make as good an observation as you can of what's nearby and look every night if you can during the first half of June. After a few nights, you'll see how Jupiter is moving and, on the nights when they're visible, you'll be better able to see if any of the dimmer objects near it are moving. Uranus will be the one to the left of Jupiter, if you're observing from the northern hemisphere. From south of the equator, Uranus will appear a little below for the first week or so.

Astute observers in the southern hemisphere will find Mercury during the first week or so of June. It's dropping into the solar glare in the morning sky. From the orbital perspective, the messenger will be at its closest to the sun on the 25th.

Here are some images simulating what the skies will look like at various times this month:

The northern solstice is on June 21st at 11:28.

A partial lunar eclipse occurs on the 26th. For most of the Americas, this happens as the moon is setting. For eastern Asia, Malaysia, and part of Australia, it's a moonrise eclipse. The entire eclipse will be visible from most of the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand, and a big part of Australia. Click here for the visibility map.

If you see any meteors around the middle of this month, see if their trails point to the constellation Lyra. That's the peak time for the June Lyrids.