Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday June 3 through Sunday June 9
The new moon for the month of June is on Thursday June 6th, so we’ll start the week with a waning crescent moon in the early morning skies and then we’ll see a thin waxing crescent moon in the early evening skies for the weekend.
Venus is in superior conjunction with the Sun on Tuesday the 4th when it will pass behind the Sun from the Earth’s point of view. After conjunction, Venus will slowly climb away from the Sun in our early evening skies throughout the rest of the year.
Saturn is rising at 2:05 a.m. at midweek, with Mars following at 3:50 a.m.
Jupiter is rising at 5:40 a.m., about 50 minutes before the Sun as it emerges from solar conjunction.
Mercury is rising at 5:55 a.m. at midweek as it moves towards solar conjunction next week.
In space anniversaries this week, Monday June 3rd marks 50 years since the launch of Explorer 52, also known as Hawkeye-1, part of the NASA Explorer Satellite program. Hawkeye-1’s primary mission was to investigate the polar magnetosphere of Earth and to additionally make measurements of the solar wind. The satellite operated for just under 4 years and it reentered the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of April 1978.
Summer public viewing at the 16-inch telescope at PMA will resume next week. Please stay tuned for schedule information.
There will be no public viewing at the Painter Hall Telescope this summer. Friday and Saturday night viewing at Painter Hall will resume in the fall semester.
Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.
