‘Naked Eye Things’

Jupiter is high in the south at dusk as June begins

Hi sky gals and guys. Way back in 2011, when I began this series of articles, my first article was “Naked Eye Things.” Maybe it`s time to go back and find another naked eye object in our night sky. The only problem with this time of year is that the evenings are long and then we have to wait through twilight. To that end, as the summer solstice approaches, you may have to wait until later than 10 p.m. to view. But – it`s worth it. Let`s begin by talking about our object for this month – a teapot. Yes, truly, there is a real, honest-to-goodness, teapot shape in the sky every summer. It has a pot shape, a handle, a lid, and a spout. Don`t believe me? Well, you can get a head start by Googling – the Teapot in Sagittarius in Astronomy. This will show you the shape – and lead you to believe me. Now – where and when? Well, it’s a little easier to see as the summer progresses, but it will always be low in the southeast to south. As we progress into June, it’s j

ust beginning to rise in the southeast. It will then be with us in the south to southwest until late August. You will need a good open southern horizon and it should be reasonably dark, especially in that direction. Note the picture you saw in Google, and don’t expect it to be bright stars. But it’s there and once you see it, you’ll never miss it again.

You can even pretend that you can see steam rising from the spout.

A very good “extra” while looking at the teapot is to go to the star that forms the top of the lid. Just to the left of this star, and slightly up, you can see a beautiful globular cluster composed of several hundred thousand stars, all seemingly in one tiny spot.

You do probably need binoculars to see this. So – enjoy your night, have a cup of tea, and see that group of stars by the lid.

Now – what’s in the sky this month? As always, we’ll look in the night sky first.

Jupiter is high in the south at dusk as the month begins. As the month begins, it sets in the southwest at about 3 a.m. It will slowly set earlier, by 1 a.m. as the month ends.

Saturn is in opposition June 14 – that is – it is directly opposite the sun for us, and will rise in the southeast at dusk, and will set in the southwest at dawn, up all night.

It is at its closest for this year and the rings are wide open, but you do need a telescope to see these.

Mars becomes lost in the sunset as the month opens. It will return later as a morning planet.

It’s interesting that especially at mid month – Saturn before sunrise in the southwest is sitting just to the west of the Teapot that we discussed above. You can always look at this in a picture in the June issue of Sky & Telescope on page 46. So what about the mornings now? Well, we’ve already noted that Saturn will be in the southwest before sunrise. Venus shines brightly in the east before sunrise. Also, Mercury is not easily seen this month either early, or late in June.

Of note, the full moon – June 9 – is the most distant full moon of 2017.

Don’t forget that the Summer Solstice is June 21, at 1:24 a.m.

I will note here that the Athena Community Astronomy Club will begin its Wednesday night on the Boardwalk sessions the first Wednesday in June.

This is, of course, weather permitting, and we’ll be there after dusk at the parking lot beside the Shipyard Market. Drop by and we’ll show you the sky.

That’s it again for another month.