Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 14: Irene nears opposition This afternoon, Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation at 4 P.M. EDT, standing 25° from the Sun. You’ll find the solar system’s smallest planet in the evening sky, now shining at magnitude 0.5.  Half an hour after sunset,Continue reading "The Sky Today on Monday, June 15: Mercury at greatest eastern elongation"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 13: Catch Comet 220P/McNaught Asteroid 14 Irene reaches opposition at 6 A.M. EDT tomorrow morning, making now a great time to catch it. Glowing at mid-9th-magnitude, Irene is already 20° high in the south an hour before midnight and stands highestContinue reading "The Sky Today on Sunday, June 14: Irene nears opposition"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 12: The Moon meets Mars Turn your telescope toward southern Pisces this morning, where Saturn outshines any of the stars in this part of the sky. This is where Comet 220P/McNaught recently underwent an outburst, quickly brightening from 18th magnitude toContinue reading "The Sky Today on Saturday, June 13: Catch Comet 220P/McNaught"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 11: Point to the Polarissima Cluster We’re interested in the early-morning sky today as the waning crescent Moon joins up with Mars in Aries. Now just 11% lit, the Moon sits almost directly above the Red Planet as they rise. AboveContinue reading "The Sky Today on Friday, June 12: The Moon meets Mars"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 10: The Moon shines with Saturn Look north after dark this evening to find the Little Dipper standing on its handle, its cup high over the horizon. The star at the end of that handle is Polaris, the North Star, markingContinue reading "The Sky Today on Thursday, June 11: Point to the Polarissima Cluster"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 9: Bright planets’ conjunction The Moon passes 6° due north of Saturn at 8 A.M. EDT; an hour before dawn, the pair is high in the eastern sky, perfect for early risers to enjoy.  Saturn is the brightest point of lightContinue reading "The Sky Today on Wednesday, June 10: The Moon shines with Saturn"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 8: Venus and Jupiter close in Venus and Jupiter have now inched closer together and stand 1.6° apart in the evening sky; the former officially passed due north of the latter at 8 A.M. EDT this morning.  Compare the view thisContinue reading "The Sky Today on Tuesday, June 9: Bright planets’ conjunction"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 7: The sky’s sunflower Venus passes 5° south of the star Pollux at noon EDT. You can view them after sunset in the west, as Venus and Jupiter are closing in for a conjunction. Tonight the planets are 1.7° apart, standingContinue reading "The Sky Today on Monday, June 8: Venus and Jupiter close in"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 6: Albireo returns By the time the sky is dark around 10 P.M. local daylight time, the constellation Canes Venatici is still more than 70° high in the west. The Hunting Dogs hold our target for tonight: M63, also known asContinue reading "The Sky Today on Sunday, June 7: The sky’s sunflower"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 5: Check in on Mars Look east around 11 P.M. local daylight time, and you’ll see three bright stars forming a triangle — this is the famous Summer Triangle asterism, which flies high overhead in the middle of short summer nights.Continue reading "The Sky Today on Saturday, June 6: Albireo returns"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 4: Jupiter passes south of Pollux Now that the Red Planet is rising roughly an hour before the Sun, let’s check in on Mars in the predawn sky. The nearby world now has time to climb well above the horizon, leadingContinue reading "The Sky Today on Friday, June 5: Check in on Mars"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 3: Juno stands still Jupiter passes 6° due south of Pollux at 7 A.M. EDT, although neither object is visible in the daylit sky. Instead, check out the scene after sunset this evening, with Jupiter still south of Pollux and alsoContinue reading "The Sky Today on Thursday, June 4: Jupiter passes south of Pollux"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 2: Titan stands close to Saturn Asteroid 3 Juno is stationary at 3 P.M. EDT, standing still against the stars of Aquila the Eagle. The large main-belt world is in far eastern Aquila and doesn’t rise until an hour before midnight.Continue reading "The Sky Today on Wednesday, June 3: Juno stands still"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  June 1: Mercury at its best Titan, Saturn’s brightest moon, is located near its parent planet for the next two days. Visible in the early-morning sky, you’ll find Titan just northeast of Saturn this morning.  Spotting Saturn is easy — rising shortlyContinue reading "The Sky Today on Tuesday, June 2: Titan stands close to Saturn"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  May 31: Blue Moon, red star Mercury is at its best for the year. It’s now easy to spot in the evening sky, already 10° above the western horizon 30 minutes after the Sun sets. Tonight, it shines at magnitude –0.5 andContinue reading "The Sky Today on Monday, June 1: Mercury at its best"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  May 30: Fly a cosmic kite Full Moon occurs at 4:45 A.M. EDT on May 31, bringing us May’s second Full Moon and the first — and only — Blue Moon of 2026. Shortly after that, at 5 A.M. EDT, the FullContinue reading "The Sky Today on Sunday, May 31: Blue Moon, red star"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  May 29: Split Nu Draconis Already high in the eastern sky an hour after sunset is the constellation Boötes the Herdsman. Easy to find thanks to its brightest star, the magnitude –0.1 red giant Arcturus, the stars of this constellation form aContinue reading "The Sky Today on Saturday, May 30: Fly a cosmic kite"

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Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  May 28: Scorpius holds M80 High in the northeast this evening, located within the head of Draco the Dragon, is one of the sky’s most famous and easy-to-split double stars. Nu (ν) Draconis appears to shine as a single 4th-magnitude star toContinue reading "The Sky Today on Friday, May 29: Split Nu Draconis"

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