Starwatch Newsletter Minnesota Starwatch is a tape-recorded message describing the night sky in the Midwest, which can be called by telelphone number (612) 624-2001 It is updated montly, and is produced by the Department of Astronomy, University of Minnesota 116 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455

Hello, this is Minnesota Starwatch for June, 2001.

In Minnesota, June is the beginning of summer and warm nights. More people will be outdoors in the evening, perhaps camping up north, with an opportunity to see a dark sky.

There is one nice surprise this month even for casual observers - Mars. That bright orange-red object in the southeast in the early evening is Mars. It will be its brightest and biggest since 1988, however at our northern latitude, Mars will be low in the sky. In early June (5th - 6th) Mars will be near the full moon about an hour after sunset and just east of the equally red star, Antares, in the Scorpion. Mars will be at its closest approach to Earth on June 21st at a distance of 42 million miles. Mars will also be at one of its equinoxes at this time so observers will be able to see it from pole to pole. With a small telescope look for the southern pole cap which is just coming out of its winter phase.

The other naked-eye planets will be visible in the morning sky. Venus will rise about 2 ½ hours before sunrise and both Jupiter and Saturn are near the Sun.

The summer solstice begins at 2:38 CDT on June 21st. Just a few hours later the Sun will be totally eclipsed along a path that crosses southern Africa and the south Atlantic ocean.

The Minneapolis Planetarium offers a wide variety of programs for all ages. For more information, call (612) 630-6150.

For those interested in the Minnesota Astronomical Society, call (651) 649-4861 for information on their upcoming events.

Minnesota Starwatch is available online at http://www.astro.umn.edu/Outreach/pub_out.html.

This has been Minnesota Starwatch, produced by the University of Minnesota Astronomy Department in cooperation with WCCO Weather Center.

Last Updated: Tue May 15 14:07:25 2001