This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, June 5, 2026
Information updated weekly or as needed.
Times given as local St. Louis time this week will be in Central Daylight Time (CDT). For definitions of terminology used in the night sky update, click the highlighted text. If relying on times posted in Universal Time (UT), St. Louis is -5 hours when CDT. Times posted in the Night Sky Update are in the 24-hour format.
Join us for our next star party, Friday, August 7, 2026, held in association with the St. Louis Astronomical Society. For details, see the information at the bottom of this page or visit https://www.slsc.org/explore/mcdonnell-planetarium/public-telescope-viewings/
Observing Highlight
Image showing position of the planets Mercury, Venus and Jupiter on June 9 and 16. Image created with Stellarium.
This week on June 9, 2026, Venus and Jupiter reach conjunction and Mercury reaches dichotomy. A few days after this, Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation. These events are great opportunities to observe the motion of planets that allowed our ancestors to realize planets are different from stars.
The most striking event this week occurs on June 9, 2026, when Venus and Jupiter pair up for a conjunction. The conjunction officially occurs at 07:35 CDT before the planets rise above the horizon. While we won’t see the official moment of conjunction, Venus and Jupiter will appear near one another on the evenings of June 8 and June 9. After June 9, Venus will continue to elongate from the Sun while Jupiter will appear nearer the Sun each day.
Unfortunately, Jupiter will slowly be lost to the Sun’s glare as we head into July. Jupiter reaches superior conjunction with the Sun on July 29, 2026. This is the day in which Jupiter would appear on the other side of the Sun from Earth. Due to Jupiter’s approaching solar conjunction, we only have about one month left in Jupiter’s current apparition.
Also on June 9, 2026, Mercury reaches dichotomy. Dichotomy occurs when Mercury exhibits a quarter phase. If you are familiar with quarter phases, it is when 50% of the planetary disk is illuminated when viewed from Earth. Mercury exhibits phase like the Moon because it is closer to the Sun than Earth. The one exception is we never see a full Mercury because it appears on the other side of the Sun when the sunlit side is facing Earth. To see Mercury in dichotomy, you will need to use a telescope.
Later in the month, Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation. This occurs on June 15, 2026. This event marks the moment when Mercury is at its great elongation from the Sun during an evening apparition. After this day, Mercury will appear to slowly drift back towards the Sun each day.
Finally, from June 16 to June 17, 2026, the waxing crescent Moon will join Mercury, Jupiter and Venus. This will make for a nice pairing low in the west about 30 minutes after sunset.
T CrB Nova Update 6/6/2026
If you are still interested in seeing the recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis, there is still hope. The nova has not yet occurred meaning we are in a waiting game. If you are still interested, the part of the sky the nova will appear overhead by the time it is dark. The star system T Coronae Borealis is found in the constellation Corona Borealis which looks like a small U-shape of stars next to the constellation Boötes. If you cannot observe the sky directly, you can track the behavior of T CrB by checking current magnitude estimates posted at AAVSO here or by visiting spaceweather.com. Current magnitude estimates of the system show it at 10th magnitude.
The Sun and Moon
Sun
Sunrise on Friday, June 5 is at 05:37 and sunset is at 20:22♣ providing nearly 15 hours of daylight. Even after sunset, light from the Sun will dimly illuminate our sky for about 2 hours. This period is called twilight, which ends around 22:18 this week. For those with a sundial, local noon occurs around 13:00 on June 5, 2026.
| Day | Sunrise (CDT) | Sunset (CDT) |
| 05-June | 5:37 | 20:22 |
| 06-June | 5:36 | 20:23 |
| 07-June | 5:36 | 20:23 |
| 08-June | 5:36 | 20:24 |
| 09-June | 5:36 | 20:24 |
| 10-June | 5:36 | 20:25 |
| 11-June | 5:36 | 20:25 |
| 12-June | 5:36 | 20:26 |
| 13-June | 5:36 | 20:26 |
Moon
Moonrise for Friday, June 6, is at 00:27 and moonset occurs at 11:08. On June 6, 2026, the Moon will exhibit a waning gibbous phase with 66% disk illumination. By June 13, 2026, the Moon will exhibit a waning crescent phase with 3% disk illumination. Last quarter moon occurs on June 8, 2026, at 05:01.
International Space Station (ISS) Observing
There are no visible passes of ISS from St. Louis for the week of June 5. ISS returns to St. Louis skies in the morning by June 18, 2026. You can find information about these and other satellite pass at https://heavens-above.com. If you are not viewing from the St. Louis area, make sure to change your viewing location for your local times.
Visible Planets
View looking west on June 9, 2026, at 21:00. Image created using Stellarium
View looking east on June 9, 2026, at 05:00. Image created using Stellarium
Four naked eye planets will be visible this week. Venus, Jupiter and Mercury will be found in the west about 30 minutes after sunset. Saturn is visible in the east before sunrise. Viewers with clear views to the East might catch a glimpse of Mars in the east before sunrise.
Mercury
Mercury is about halfway through an evening apparition becoming visible in the west about 30 minutes after sunset. Look for the planet about 12° northwest of Venus. It reaches greatest eastern elongation on June 15, 2026.
Venus
Venus is visible in the west after sunset. Its current evening apparition will continue until October as it approach inferior conjunction on October 23, 2026. Venus sets by 22:58.
Mars
Those with a clear view to the east might be able to spot Mars around 05:00. It will be found about 12° above the horizon.
Jupiter
Jupiter will be visible in the west about 30 minutes after sunset, Jupiter remains visible until 22:30. Much later than this, Jupiter will appear too low in altitude making it difficult for some to find. Jupiter’s current apparition continues through June and some of July as it heads towards superior conjunction on July 29, 2026. Jupiter set around 23:00 this week.
Saturn
Saturn can be found rising in the east around 04:00. By the start of civil twilight, Saturn can be found about 20° above the horizon.
Our next Star Party will be held on Friday, August 7, 2026 from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm.
On the first Friday of each month, the St. Louis Astronomical Society and the Saint Louis Science Center will set up a number of telescopes outdoors and be on hand to answer your questions. Telescope viewing begins once it is dark.
The St. Louis Astronomical Society helps host the monthly Star Parties at the Saint Louis Science Center. In addition to our nighttime viewings, they also help facilitate our daytime event called Solar Sundays. These daytime viewing sessions occur every Sunday through Labor Day. After Labor Day they occur on the 3rd Sunday each month. Visit SLAS’s website linked above to learn about other telescope events SLAS hosts around the St. Louis area.
James S. McDonnell Planetarium
Night Sky Update for June 5, 2026
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