If you’re a night owl, this is the perfect time of year for you! Stargazing has now transformed into a thrilling late-night adventure. The first 10 days of June promise the best stargazing experience, with the moon mostly out of the sky, providing a darker backdrop for your celestial treasure hunt. (Mike Lynch) The continuous transition in the night sky is a fascinating process.
As our Earth continues in its orbit around the sun, the nighttime side of the Earth faces different directions in space from month to month and season to season. By the start of June, most of the stars and constellations of winter have vanished from our evening skies. Among the few brighter winter stars still with us after dusk are Castor and Pollux, in the constellation Gemini the Twins.
You can see them side by side in the low west-northwestern sky. In the lower north-northwestern sky is the bright star Capella in the constellation Auriga the Charioteer, on its way off our celestial stage. A little higher above the western horizon, look for a right-leaning backward question mark.
That outlines the chest and head of one of the brighter spring constellations, Leo the Lion. Its brightest star is Regulus, at the bottom of the question mark, depicting the lion’s heart. Moderately bright stars arranged in a triangle make up Leo’s rear and tail.
Face north, lie back on a lawn chair, and you’ll easily see the Big Dipper hanging by its handle in the high northwestern heavens. The Big Dipper isn’t a.
