Skylights: June 2026

The Sun

June brings us the longest days and the shortest nights, but there is still quite a lot to see.

June 1st is the first of 41 days with a minimum of 15 hours of daylight. We’ll continue to experience longer daylight times through July 11.

The equation of time, the measure of how “fast” or “slow” the Sun is on a given date, is 0 on the 13th, and decreases to a minor minimum of -6:33 in late July..This is the reason why the latest sunsets extend for nearly two weeks past the solstice.

The earliest sunrise of 2026 is at 5:10am on the 14th.

The Sun is at solstice at 4:24am EDT on the 21st, the longest day of the year, with 15 hours and 13 minutes of sunlight for latitude 41.85° north.

The latest sunset of 2026 occurs at 8:24pm on the 27th, although it will take a few more days to notice any earlier sunset times, as it will be just two seconds earlier the following day, and 16 days until it sets before 8:20pm.

The Sun moves into Gemini on the 21st, where it will reside for the next 29 days.

The Moon

See the 92.6% waning gibbous Moon in the handle of the teapot asterism of Sagittarius on the 2nd-3rd, just 0.6° northwest of Nunki (τ Sagittarii).

Last quarter Moon is at 6:00am on the 8th in Aquarius.

The 29.6% waning crescent Moon meets Saturn on the 10th, appearing 4.4° to the north-northwest of the ringed planet. Two mornings later, the 12th, it is 6.9° west-northwest of Mars.

The 4.8% waning crescent Moon is near the Pleiades cluster in Taurus on the 13th. At about 4:00am, a medium telephoto lens will net the Pleiades, the Moon, and Mars, all arranged in a crooked line extending 13° and almost parallel to the east-northeastern horizon.

There is a daylight occultation of the Pleiades by the Moon, lasting from 7:36am to 9:20am, but since this is only 22° west of the Sun, it won’t be worth the effort to try to observe it.

New Moon is at 10:54pm on the 14th, marking the start of Lunation 1280. Over the next few days it joins the planetary trio in the west-northwest after sunset. First, a young Moon sighting opportunity exists on the 15th, when the 22.6 hour, 1.3% crescent sets 71 minutes past sunset.

Then on the 16th, the 5.5% crescent is just 2.4° northeast of Mercury, which telescopically also exhibits a crescent phase. Jupiter is 4.5° to the southwest, and if you see something sparkling above the Moon, that is Pollux (β Geminorum). 

The 17th offers some special treats for lunar and planetary observers. 

A daytime occultation of Venus by the waxing crescent Moon occurs at 3:59pm, when the Moon will be high in the sky, a few degrees west of the meridian, and 37° east of the Sun. Venus reappears from the sunlit limb of the Moon about ⅓ of the distance from the northern cusp to the midpoint of the crescent 70 minutes later. The sunlit position of the globe of Venus takes about 33 seconds to ingress, and about 39 seconds to reappear.

Although Venus is visible with binoculars during daytime skies of favorable transparency, a telescope with medium to high magnification will provide the best views. To avoid allowing any sunlight to get near your optics, and to mitigate heat distortion, set up in a shaded area that has an open view from south to southwest. 

If you’d rather wait until sunset to observe, the Moon remains close to Venus, about 1.8°, during twilight. Moon-Venus pairings are always a stunning sight, and this one has an added dimension for telescope users. Beginning at 8:54pm, the Earthlit limb of the crescent Moon begins to occult  the brighter stars of the Beehive Cluster, M44. Although this is deep in twilight, there are several star occultations to watch as the sky darkens. The last of the brighter members of the cluster reappear at 10:20pm. The sparkling cluster appearing just to the west of the 12.3% crescent Moon should be a fine sight in any telescope.

You can easily map the ecliptic on the 18th, when the Moon lies 8.0° west-northwest of Regulus, setting up a celestial lineup of five objects: Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, the Moon, and Regulus, all of which lie within 0.5° of the line demarking the apparent path of the Sun in the sky, except Venus, which is presently 2.0° north of the ecliptic.

The Moon is a bit closer to Regulus (5.8° southeast) the following night, but the distinct alignment on the ecliptic is lost.

First quarter Moon is at 5:55pm on the 21st in Virgo. Two nights later, find the waxing gibbous 4.2° south-southeast of Spica, the constellation's brightest star.

On the 27th, the nearly full Moon is 4.8° east-southeast of Antares in Scorpius.

On the 28th, the 99.0% gibbous Moon occults the galactic center for 17 minutes beginning at 8:30pm EDT.

June’s full Moon, named the Strawberry Moon for its proximity to the strawberry harvest, is at 7:56pm EDT on the 29th. Rising at 8:42pm during civil twilight, the Strawberry Moon is the most southerly culminating full Moon of 2026, appearing just 20.4° over our southern horizon when it transits at 1:01am on the final morning of the month, in Sagittarius. Note that the Moon lies within the teapot asterism, well below the ecliptic, and just 0.5° south of φ Sgr, a class B8 star with a luminosity 475 times brighter than the Sun, shining at a magnitude 3.1 from a distance of 239 light years. The Moon sets at 5:23am, nine minutes after sunrise.

The Planets

Both Mercury and Venus put on their best shows during June, with the innermost planet reaching a favorable maximum elongation of 24.5° east of the Sun on the 15th. 

On the 9th, Mercury appears 50% illuminated (half-Moon phase), and goes through a waning crescent thereafter. 

The fleeting planet has its latest set time at 10:08pm on the 11th, almost two hours after sunset. By month’s end, it is setting just under an hour after sunset.

Mercury spends the latter half of June within the same binocular field of view as Jupiter, with the two planets appearing closest, at 3.4°, on the 25th.

On the 25th, Mercury is over 10 arcseconds, and its 19.8% illuminated crescent should be an impressive sight in a telescope.

Not only is Venus at its best in June, but its proximity to Jupiter during the first two weeks of the month will be one of the highlights to see. A very spectacular grouping of Venus with Jupiter, Mercury, and the Moon occurs on the evenings of the 16th and 17th..

Each night in early June, Venus moves closer to Jupiter, finally overtaking the giant planet on the 9th, when the two planets will be just 1.6° apart.

Turn your telescope to Venus on the 19th to see it amidst the swarming stars of the Beehive Cluster, M44, in Cancer.

Venus remains prominently visible during June evenings. The Moon pays it a special visit on the 17th, when a daytime occultation occurs from 3:59pm to 5:09pm EDT.

On the 10th, Venus appears aligned with the twin stars Castor and Pollux. Also on the 10th, the setting time of the Evening Star reaches its latest time, when Venus is visible in our sky until 10:58pm, just a day after Mercury’s latest set time.

By month’s end, Venus will be just over 1.0 au from Earth, and its 69.1% illuminated gibbous globe will extend to 16.0 arcseconds

Mars becomes more visible in the predawn sky during June. On the 12th and 13th, the waning crescent Moon is nearby.

The Red Planet enters Taurus on the 19th, and beginning on the 24th, it rises before the onset of astronomical twilight for the first time this season. During the final week of June, it can be seen within the same binocular field as not only the Pleiades cluster, but also Uranus. Mars is at its closest to the Pleiades, 4.4° to the south-southeast, on the 29th.

Still over 2 au from Earth, Mars shows a minuscule 4.4 arcsecond gibbous globe. We’ll need to wait several more weeks until Mars is visible higher in the sky before even large telescopes are able to resolve surface features on the Red Planet.

Jupiter begins to depart our evening sky in June, but not before being joined by Venus and Mercury for a grand seasonal send-off. Its pairing with Venus will mark one of the more memorable sights in the early June sky. 

On the 9th, Venus joins the king of the planets, with the pair separated by just 1.6°. A fine sight to the unaided eye, Venus is only 19.8% the distance to Jupiter from our view, at 1.195 au compared to Jupiter’s 6.045 au. Jupiter’s light takes over 50 minutes to reach us, whereas light from Venus is just under 10 minutes old.

During this close encounter, Jupiter holds his moons close. For a brief time before 9:00pm, you may see only one of its four Galilean satellites, Callisto; if you turn your telescope towards Jupiter during twilight. Io emerges from eclipse a few minutes later, and Europa transits Jupiter’s disk, reemerging just before 9:40pm.

Jupiter sets outside of the period of astronomical twilight for the final time on the 13th, though it will remain visible for another three weeks.

Don’t miss the chance to see the thin crescent Moon 4.5° to the west-northwest of Jupiter on the 16th.

After having spent the past year within Gemini, Jupiter gets chased out of the twins constellation just as the Sun enters it on the 21st. It will reside within Cancer for the next three months. After it departs Gemini, it can be seen aligned with the twin stars Castor and Pollux on the 24th.

Jupiter ends the month of June sinking into the twilight along with Mercury, as the pair remain within the same binocular field during most of the second half of the month.

Saturn is coming into good viewing position in the morning sky. After a 55-day trek through Cetus, Saturn moves into Pisces on the 3rd, where it will remain until September 5, when it returns to Cetus by way of its retrograde motion.

In stark contrast to viewing Saturn last year, the ringed planet is showing us more of its rings now, as its equatorial plane is now tilted more than 10° towards us, and the shadow of the planet on the back side of the rings is quite pronounced.

Saturn is joined by two of our solar system’s largest asteroids in June, Pallas and Vesta, with the three bodies being in a line on the 14th. See the Minor Planets section for more details.

The 29.6% waning crescent Moon is 4.4° north-northwest of Saturn on the 10th.

Uranus returns to the morning sky, rising before the onset of astronomical twilight for the first time this season on the 29th. It can be seen with a telescope 5.0° southeast of the Pleiades.

Watch as Mars approaches the magnitude 5.8 seventh planet from the west, closing distance with Uranus by ⅓° per day. By the end of June, Uranus, Mars, and the Pleiades will all be within one binocular field of view.

Uranus has moved notably eastward since we last observed it in the evening sky, so we’ll need to use a different set of stars to pinpoint its location, especially when its brightness is dimmed by a substantial amount of airmass as it remains low on the horizon.

Starting at the Pleiades, draw a line from Maia (20 Tauri) through Atlas (27 Tauri), and move 4.1° to the east-southeast until you encounter 4th magnitude star 37 Tauri. Continuing in approximately the same direction, just 1/3° away, is 5.9 magnitude 39 Tauri. Note the brightness of this star because it is about the equivalent to that of Uranus. From there, make a slightly obtuse angle to move three Moon diameters to the south to find Uranus. Note that Uranus is moving eastward at 3.0 arcminutes per day, so the angle you make from the pair of stars will widen over the next weeks, but early next month, we’ll have an easier way to find Uranus.

Neptune is visible in the east-southeast before dawn, but unlike last season, Saturn can no longer be used as a guidepoint to locate the most distant planet, and it is not located near any other brighter stars, so we’ll need to come up with a new way of locating it for this year.

Fortunately, it lies along a line extended southward from the eastern segment of the Great Square, so we can quickly get to the right area. Start at Alpheratz (α Andromedae- yes the northeastern star in the most distinct star pattern in Pegasus actually belongs to a different constellation), and move south through Algenib (γ Pegasi).

Continue southward along this line for about the same distance (14°) to find a little quadrilateral of 6th and 7th magnitude stars that is about 1° wide by ¼° tall. From the easternmost star, HD 1367, move south gain just over 1° to find a small triangle of 7th and 8th magnitude stars, whose longest segment, about 1/2° in length, is the one farthest away from the quadrilateral above. From the westernmost star of this segment, HD 1329, Neptune will be just a few arcminutes to the west. At magnitude 7.8, its pale blue color should give it away under medium magnification in a telescope. Although Neptune is currently moving eastward at just under ½ arcminute per day, we will be able to use these stars to locate the distant planet for the next several months.

Neptune reaches quadrature, 90° west of the Sun, on the 25th.

Minor Planets

Ceres remains too close to the Sun to be observed in June. It becomes visible again later in July.

Pluto, at a dim 14.6 magnitude, is located 3.7° northwest of ψ Capricorni, and 1.0° southeast of magnitude 6.1 HD 195006.

Use Saturn as a guide to find two of our solar system’s largest asteroids, 2 Pallas and 4 Vesta, during June.

Pallas is just 0.9° north-northeast of Saturn on the 9th, and on the 10th, use a larger telescope to find 10.1 magnitude Pallas about ¼ of the distance between Saturn and the Moon, just about ¼° west of the line.

On the 14th, Pallas is just 1.0° north of Saturn, and Vesta is 3.9° south of the ringed planet, almost a perfect line of the three objects. At magnitude 7.9, Vesta will be a little easier to see in smaller telescopes.

As Earth and Pallas get closer through June, the asteroid slowly brightens through 10th magnitude. By the end of the month, it is 3.0 au distant and shines at magnitude 9.9.

On the 28th and 29th, use Pallas as a guide to locate a seldom-observed member of our Local Group: Caldwell 51 (C51, IC 1613) 1.7° to the south of the asteroid. C51 is an irregular dwarf galaxy just 2.3 million light years away, approximately the same distance as the Andromeda Galaxy. Although listed as magnitude 9.9, it is very diffuse and difficult to observe due to its low surface brightness. It is best to make a note and come back to it in a few months when it is better positioned higher in the sky.

Asteroid 3 Juno is in Aquila, near the border with Aquarius. Shining at 10th magnitude, it begins moving retrograde in early June, and is located near an asterism on the Astronomical League’s Asterism Observing Program list, HD 196944, described as “Christmas Tree shape, with tip pointed south. Total of 20 stars.”

Juno is at 2.0 au from Earth on the 26th.

1613 Smiley is moving westward through Sagittarius, just west of the Herman’s Cross asterism (#100 on Astronomical League’s Asterism Observing Program), and slowly brightening through 16th magnitude as it approaches opposition and its closest distance to Earth in July. On the 19th, Smiley is 3.0° due north of the globular cluster Messier 55.

Small asteroids are whizzing past Earth all the time, but most of them are rather small, and challenging to observe for backyard astronomers. However, in late June, an asteroid approximately a kilometer across will come within easy reach of our telescopes, but not close enough to cause concern.

Designated 152637 (1997 NC1), it will approach from the north, and is expected to be 11th magnitude by the evening of the 24th, when it will be 5.0° south of Sheliak (beta Lyrae), moving south-southwestward at 28 arcminutes per hour.

On the 25th-26th, it moves through Hercules, shining at magnitude 10.9 about 15° west of the Coathanger asterism (Cr 399) at the end of evening twilight, and moving south-southwestward at 36 arcseconds per hour.

The following night, the 26th-27th, may be the best time to view it, as it remains relatively high in the sky, and passes fairly close to an easily recognized asterism in Ophiuchus: Taurus Poniatovii, located a few degrees east of magnitude 2.8 Cebalrai (beta Ophiuchi) and the large open cluster IC 4665. On this night, the magnitude 10.3 asteroid will be moving south-southwestward at 43 arcminutes per hour, motion that is swift enough to detect in real-time as it moves past background stars.

Its closest approach of 0.0171 au (just 6.7 times the distance to the Moon) occurs just after 4:00am on the 27th.

By the 27th, glare from the nearby 96.7% waxing gibbous Moon begins to impede observations, but the asteroid should remain visible with a medium-aperture telescope. Still moving at 42 arcminutes per hour, it passes within five arcminutes to the east of magnitude 4.3 ν Serpentis at about 11:10pm.

The 28th-29th will likely be the last night it can easily be tracked, as it moves through Scorpius, 5.0° east of Antares at midnight. On the 29th-30th, is is about 10° south of Antares, and on the final evening of the month it is too low in our sky to be observed.

While classified as a potentially hazardous asteroid (PHA), 1997 NC1 is not predicted to impact Earth in the foreseeable future, so get out your telescopes and enjoy the view of this close pass.

Meteors

One of the lesser-known meteor showers, the June Bootids, is active during the end of June. The shower is fed by periodic comet 7P/Pons-Winnecke, which has an orbital period of just over six years. Jupiter’s tug on the comet and its meteor stream has resulted in a wide range of meteor activity over the years, with several significant outbursts in the early 20th century, but in recent years, the shower has been fairly quiet. However, due to the favorable position of the radiant high overhead during late June evenings, expect to possibly see a few meteors around the peak night of June 28th.

Stars

During these shortened June evenings, not only does the sparkle occur overhead, but also in the landscape around us, as fireflies (Lampyridae) engage in their annual mating rituals by lighting our nights.

With the year’s latest onset of darkness, the spring sky moves out from over us at a rapid pace. At the beginning of June, the eastern half of the Winter Hexagon remains in view over the western horizon. By month’s end, the spring constellations Leo, Virgo, and Corvus are beginning to slip into the western twilight as the eastern sky is being filled with the star patterns of summer, which will remain visible for the next six months.

Ursa Major assumes its seasonal nose-down orientation, with the Big Dipper appearing to be pouring out its contents over the northwestern horizon.

Low in the north, Cassiopeia crosses to the east of the meridian, and with it, the summer Milky Way slowly begins to arc over the eastern sky, culminating in Scorpius, now coming into view in the southeast.

Arcturus, the beacon of spring and the 4th brightest star in the sky, is now high in the south at dusk. Look to the east to see the Summer Triangle, and due south during early June evenings lies a constellation you may have thought you’d never see from New England: Centaurus. 

June is the last month of spring, providing us with some of the last cool, clear, and transparent nights before the onset of summer haze and humidity. That makes it a good time to delve deep into the southern sky during the evening hours to enjoy some heavenly sights that we don’t get to see very often.

Although this southern constellation is perhaps best known for hosting the closest star system to our Sun, Rigel Kentaurus (α Centauri), and some notable deep sky objects, some of which are visible to us but very challenging to see due to their extremely low position in our sky, we’ll look for a star that should be fairly easy to find: Menkent (θ Centauri). Listed as the fourth-brightest star in the constellation at magnitude 2.1, Menkent is the second-brightest theta star of any constellation, only bested by Sargas (θ Scorpii), at magnitude 1.9, 40° to its east and 6.5° lower in declination. It is worth remembering that even bright stars at very low elevations are extincted by a significant amount of airmass, and will not appear nearly as bright as their catalog-listed magnitude, especially on nights of less-than-ideal transparency. Choose a night in early June, when bright moonlight doesn’t interfere, and hopefully, the hazy, humid nights haven’t yet begun. Menkent is located at RA 14h 06m 41s, Dec: −36° 22' 12", and is located very close to the same hour angle as Arcturus, so once the bright star transits, look with binoculars just 12° above the southern horizon.

Many of the brighter stars in Centaurus are hot, blue stars in the B classification that lie several hundred light years away, Menkent is a fairly unremarkable K class star that is only 61 light years away. It is not a binary, nor does it have any known exoplanets. It is a relatively ordinary star in our stellar neighborhood, but for us, it holds the distinction as being the easiest resident of Centaurus to see in our sky.

And while we’re on the hunt for far southern objects, keep your binoculars or small telescope ready as the next constellation east of Centaurus crosses the meridian, Scorpius.

Our destination is easy to locate just offset of the halfway point between Alnasl (γ Sagittarii, the tip of the teapot asterism) and Shaula (λ Scorpii, the brightest star at the end of the stinger)

Messier 7 holds the distinction of being the southernmost Messier object, at a declination of -34° 49’. Noted by Greco-Roman astronomer Ptolemy in the year 130 as a nebulous object, this open cluster, now commonly known as Ptolemy’s Cluster, was added by Charles Messier to his famous list of non-cometary objects in 1764.

Located 980 light years away and spanning 25 light years across, M7 contains about 80 stars over an area roughly three times the diameter of the full Moon, making this a fine sight in smaller instruments. It would certainly be more frequently visited if it weren’t for its exceptionally low elevation in our sky, culminating at only 13.4°

With the shape of a broad X whose NE-SW line is staggered, M7 has a Trumpler classification of I,3,r, meaning it is detached with a strong central core, has a wide range of magnitudes, and is rich in stars. 

Don’t miss this fine celestial sight, and when you return from your southern sojourn, meander back north through the Milky Way, and perhaps you will discover a new favorite destination.