Posted: 10:23, June 1, 2022
Take out your telescopes because this month we will see our skies full of everything from a supermoon to the summer solstice.
Here’s everything you can see in the sky in June 2022.
The moon
A Supermoon on Beccles – Credit: Nick Butcher
The March phases are as follows:
- New Moon – May 30
- First quarter – June 7
- Strawberry Moon – June 14
- As one of the first full moons of summer, this moon gets its name from the ripening of the fruit. Other names are the flowering moon, the honeymoon, and the birth moon.
- This will be a supermoon that is a combination of a lunar perigee (when the moon is close to Earth) and a full moon. Supermoons look up to 14 pcs bigger and 30 pcs brighter than normal.
- Last quarter – June 20th
- New Moon – June 28
The stars and the planets
Venus will be one of the brightest planets this month – Credit: Sarah Lucy Brown
Venus will be bright this month, rising 80 to 100 minutes before the sun. The sky will be low in the northeast.
Mercury will be in the same area, rising about 30 minutes after Venus. It will be harder to locate, so use Venus as your guide.
Mars will rise about two hours before the sun this month to the southeast. It will be lit until June.
Jupiter will be close to Mars earlier this month with the two slowly separating.
Saturn will appear south in the morning. Through a telescope, the rings appear to tighten.
Neptune and Uranus are also morning planets but are not visible this month.
Summer Solstice
Sunset at the summer solstice in Hunstanton. Photo: Anita Clarke – Credit: Archant
The solstice marks the beginning of the astronomical summer, which will take place on Tuesday, June 21.
The sun will rise at 4.43am and set at 9.22pm. The exact solstice will be at 10:13 p.m.
Daylight hours in the northern hemisphere are at their peak and night is at their lowest, with the Earth’s axis tilted toward the sun.