Unfortunately we were not able to see or photograph the Venus Transit here in SW Florida due to cloudy weather… During our Summer months the weather becomes unpredictable for star gazing. We have increased clouds and humidity – and we have the mosquitos. Still, there is allot to see overhead if you get to go out when it is clear. If you go out when it is later in the evening, you’ll find the bugs tend to be not as bad as earlier on. The sky also improves for star gazing. Later in the evening being after midnight.
I’ve included a star chart Link for June. Early in the month, Scorpio is coming up by sunset and by 10pm, is visible in the East. Scorpio is a distinctive constellation, looking like its namesake or, as New Zealanders called their North island, Te-Ika-a-Maui, meaning The Fish of Maui. Maui was the chief of the gods, and using a fish jawbone as a fish hook he pulled the island of New Zealand up from the underworld. Having created the islands in this way, Maui then tossed his fish hook up into the sky where it now makes up the outline of a Fish hook. Knowing this constellation, it seems to me more of a fish hook than a Scorpion.
In the heart of Scorpio is a red supergiant star called Antares. Antares appears visually to be red. It rises at 7:41pm, and is overhead by midnight. Antares is the 16th brightest star in the sky and one of the navigational stars (before GPS.) It takes its name from the red color, its Greek name meaning “Rival of Mars” Mars being the Roman god of war, the Romans called it Cor Scorpionis meaning the Heart of the Scorpion.
When you gaze at Antares, consider that if it were placed at our suns location, it would swallow all of the planets from Mercury to Mars so it’s quite large. Distance wise, its 550 Ly meaning as you are looking at it, you are seeing it as it was 550 years ago! This is what Carl Sagan called “Look back” time. You are seeing things in the sky not as they are, but as they were.
If you look around Antares with your binoculars, you might spot a small cluster of tightly packed stars. This is M4 which is one of the closest and brightest globular (owing to its roundness) clusters in the night sky. It was discovered in 1746 and was included in Lacaille’s catalog. M4 is one of the easiest globular clusters to find and I hope you will take a shot at looking for it from a dark sky. Pan around Scorpio with your binoculars once Scorpio gets up higher. The sky is changing on us for Summer and we’re getting a look at a different part of our galaxy as the Summer wears on. The Sagittarius arm of the Milky Way. More on that later. If you have questions about the night sky, observing, etc.. drop me a note at Linda@AstronomyGal.com Get outside and observe the sky with your family, it’s a great pasttime.