This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, June 3, 2022.
Information updated weekly or as needed.
Times given as local St. Louis time which is 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.
Public Telescope Viewings
Public telescope viewings at the McDonnell Planetarium have returned as part of the Saint Louis Science Center’s First Friday event. As we ease back into our telescope nights, they will operate a little different than before. To take part in our telescope viewings you will need to get a ticket for the planetarium show that starts at 7:00 p.m. as part of the First Friday event. Tickets for the First Friday planetarium show are free, but they can only be picked up at the Saint Louis Science Center on the night of the event. After the planetarium show ends you will be able to go outside and look through telescopes weather permitting. We will update this posting if anything changes.
Solar telescopes viewings have also returned and will take place every Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. weather permitting. Solar Sundays will run from May 29, 2022, to September 4, 2022. The return of Solar Sundays is a good opportunity to prepare for the upcoming solar eclipses in 2023 and 2024.
Observing Highlight of the Week
First quarter moon seen on June 7, 2022. Image credit: NASA, SVS, Ernie Wright.
The moon will reach first quarter phase on June 7, 2022. This is ideal for those more apt to viewing earlier in the evening. If you go out after sunset on June 7, you will see the Moon due south.
When viewing the Moon, you will find the most details along a line called the terminator. From our vantage point, this looks like a sharp line that separates day and night on the Moon. More details can be seen near this line because shadows cast by surface features are long which gives more contrast to the lunar surface.
There are several large features that will be visible through various binoculars. Mare, craters and mountains are good lunar features to start with if you are new to lunar observing. Visible to the unaided eye, Maria are large dark patches visible on the lunar surface. They are typically large impact basins that later filled with lava. Mare visible during first quarter phase are: Serenitatis, Tranquillitatis, Crisium, Fecunditatis, Vaporum and Nectaris. Mare Tranquillitatis was the landing site of Apollo 11 and Mare Serenitatis was the landing site of Apollo 17.
Mare Imbrium is partially visible along the terminator but most of it is still hidden. For those with binoculars, the outer edge of Mare Imbrium is marked by two prominent mountain chains. The north chain is called Montes Alpes and the southern chain is Montes Apenninus. If you look at the Montes Alps system, you should see a large valley that bisects the mountain chain called Vallis Alpes or the Alpine Valley. This feature is likely a graben that later filled with lava.
If you are looking for craters, three great choices to start with are craters Ptolomaeus, Alphonsus and Arzachel. These craters are seen together near the middle of the terminator, appearing as an upside-down snowman.
Aside from lunar observing, some might be excited to know that Artemis I is headed to its launch pad later this month, as it continues to prepare for launch in August this year. This will be our first step towards seeing humans return to the Moon. The first crew Artemis mission will be Artemis 2, which is expected to launch in 2024.
The Sun and Moon
The Moon as seen from the International Space Station, on July 31, 2011.
Credit: NASA
Sunrise is at 5:37 a.m. on Friday, June 3 and sunset is at 8:21 p.m. providing us with over 14.5 hours of daylight. Even after sunset, the light from the Sun will dimly illuminate our sky for roughly 1 hour and 50 minutes. This period is called twilight, which ends around 10:09 p.m. this week. For those with a sundial, local noon occurs around 12:57 p.m. this week.
| 2022-06-03 | 5:37 a.m. | 8:21 p.m. |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-06-04 | 5:37 a.m. | 8:21 p.m. |
| 2022-06-05 | 5:37 a.m. | 8:22 p.m. |
| 2022-06-06 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:23 p.m. |
| 2022-06-07 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:23 p.m. |
| 2022-06-08 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:24 p.m. |
| 2022-06-09 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:24 p.m. |
| 2022-06-10 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:25 p.m. |
| 2022-06-11 | 5:36 a.m. | 8:25 p.m. |
Moon
Moonrise for Friday, June 3 occurred at 9:10 a.m. and moonset will occur at 11:58 p.m. On Friday, June 3, the Moon will exhibit a waxing crescent phase with 17% of the lunar disk illuminated. First quarter moon occurs on June 7, 2022, at 2:48 p.m.
International Space Station (ISS) Observing
Visible passes of ISS from St. Louis for the week of June 3 occur during evening hours. The only pass that occurs this week is on June 4. Use the table below for information about this pass. ISS will return to St. Louis skies on June 22, 2022.
Catch ISS from St. Louis starting Friday, June 3
| Date | Starts | Max. altitude | Ends | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | ||
| 4 | -1.5 | 21:01:51 | 10 | W | 21:04:12 | 18 | SW | 21:06:32 | 10 | S |
Magnitude (Mag): The Measure of brightness for a celestial object. The lower the value is, the brighter the object will be.
Altitude (Alt): The angle of a celestial object measured upwards from the observer’s horizon.
Azimuth (Az): The direction of a celestial object, measured clockwise from an observer’s location with north being 0°, east being 90°, south being 180° and west being 270°.
For information about ISS flyovers and other visible satellites, visit www.heavens-above.com
Detailed information regarding all unmanned exploration of our universe, missions past, present, and planned, can be found at Jet Propulsion Laboratories:
The Visible Planets
Looking southeast at 4:45 a.m. June 5, 2022. Credit: Stellarium, EG
This week, four naked eye planets are visible. Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are seen in the east and southeast before sunrise.
Venus
Venus has started a morning apparition and will be seen in the southeast before sunrise. Venus rises at 3:53 a.m. and should be easy to spot in the southeast by 5:00 a.m. The current morning apparition lasts until the third week of October 2022. Venus reaches superior conjunction on October 22, 2022.
Mars
A new apparition for Mars has begun. Mars rises at 2:34 a.m. Start looking for Mars around 3:30a.m. as it clears trees and buildings. Mars will continue to climb out of the Sun’s glare as it heads towards opposition later this year on December 7, 2022.
Jupiter
Jupiter rises at 2:21 a.m. and should be visible by 3:20 a.m. As the year goes on, Jupiter will rise about 20 minutes earlier than it did the week before. Jupiter will reach opposition on September 26, 2022, so our best views of this giant world will come at the end of summer and through the fall months.
Saturn
Saturn rises at 12:44 a.m. Start looking for Saturn around 1:45 a.m. in the southeastern sky. Saturn will reach opposition on August 14, 2022. As we head to this date, Saturn will rise earlier each day.
James S. McDonnell Planetarium
Night Sky Update: June 3 – June 11, 2022