Mercury - can be seen in the evening sky during the second and third weeks of June. Look for it 10 degrees up in the west a half-hour after sunset. Mercury will fade from magnitude -0.5 to +0.5 during this time. The planet's phase will range from gibbous to crescent and the disc from 6 to 9 arc-seconds in diameter.

Mars - is located in Cancer this month, passing directly through the center of the Beehive Star Cluster (M44) on the evening of June 15. On the evening of June 17, Mars will be only 0.5 degree from Saturn. The "red" planet is about 30 degrees high in the west at sunset and is well-placed for viewing till about 10 pm EDT. Mars fades from magnitude 1.7 to 1.8 and its gibbous disc is only 4 arc-seconds in diameter this month. Even larger surface features will be difficult to see.

Saturn - located in Cancer, the ringed planet is 0.5 to 3 degrees from of the Beehive Star Cluster (M44) during June. Saturn can be seen about 30 degrees up in the west at sunset at mid-month. The planet is well placed for viewing till about 10 pm EDT. Saturn will be 0.4 magnitude during June with an apparent diameter of 17 arc-seconds. The rings will be 36 arc-seconds across and are currently tilted 19 degrees to our line-of-sight.

The Cassini spacecraft continues its observation of Saturn and its many moons and rings. For the latest images from Cassini, see:

http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm

For detailed postions of Saturn's Moons try our interactive javascript utility.

Jupiter - is located in Libra this month. The "King" of the planets can be seen in the SE just after sunset and is well placed for viewing till 2 am. Jupiter is near the meridian (due south) around 10:30 pm at mid-month, when it will be 35 degrees above the horizon. Jupiter will be magnitude -2.4 with an apparent diameter that ranges from 44 to 41 arc-seconds. Jupiter's Great Red Spot, a large anti-cyclone, can be seen centered on the planet's disc at the following times (EDT):

06/03/2006, 11:05 pm; 06/06/2006, 12:44 am; 06/08/2006, 10:13 pm; 06/10/2006, 11:51 pm; 06/13/2006, 09:21 pm; 06/15/2006, 10:59 pm; 06/18/2006, 12:38 am; 06/20/2006, 10:07 pm; 06/22/2006, 11:46 pm; 06/25/2006, 09:16 pm; 06/27/2006, 10:54 pm; 06/30/2006, 12:33 am

For detailed postions of Jupiter's Moons try our interactive javascript utility.

Venus - can be seen in the morning sky. Look for it 15 to 20 degrees up in the east just before sunrise. Venus will be magnitude -3.8 for most of the month. Through a telescope, the planet will appear gibbous and have a diameter that decreases from 14 to 12 arc-seconds during June.

Pluto - is located in Serpens this month, passing through opposition to the Sun on June 16. Pluto will then be 33 degrees high in the south around 1 am. At magnitude 13.9, a 6 inch scope or larger will be needed to see Pluto. A finder chart for Pluto can be found on page 66 of the May issue of Sky & Telescope.