Night Sky Highlights for April-June 2019
Solar System
Moon
On Friday, May 10, the crescent Moon will pass through the Beehive Cluster (Messier 44) between approximately 10 pm and midnight. It should be an interesting sight through binoculars or a telescope at low power.
Mercury
We will have a good chance to observe Mercury after sunset in the middle of June this year. As always, a clear view of the western horizon is needed. On Tuesday, June 18, Mars will be just 1/4 of a degree below Mercury, easily visible in the same telescopic field of view. Mercury (magnitude 0.2) will be noticeably brighter than Mars (magnitude 1.8).
Venus
Throughout the spring, Venus will remain low in the eastern sky just before dawn. Because it is so bright, it should be visible even as the sky brightens, but it will be hard to spot by the end of June. It is moving away from Earth, and will appear as a small gibbous disk through a telescope.
Mars
Because Mars is moving to the east among the background stars, it stays in western sky after sunset throughout April, May, and June, even as the constellations move along. Unfortunately it is very far from Earth and very small (less than 4″ in diameter in June, which is not much larger than the apparent size of Uranus!).
Jupiter
Jupiter reaches opposition on June 9, so on that date it rises as the Sun sets. This means that it will be well placed for observing in the east during evening. In April and May, it rises in the late or mid-evening, so you will have to stay up late (or get up before dawn) to see it.
Saturn
Throughout the spring, Saturn be easy to spot in the morning sky among the stars of Sagittarius. In mid-June, it will be rising about 2 hours after sunset, so it will be well placed for observing in the southeastern sky around midnight.
Uranus
Uranus will be too close to the Sun to observe through most of the spring. In June it rises before dawn, but it will still be hard to spot in the morning twilight. To find it, you will need a finder chart such as the one in this article from the Sky & Telescope website:
www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/planets/ice-giants-neptune-and-uranus/
Neptune
The link above also has a finder chart for Neptune. If you want an easy way to spot it, try before dawn on Wednesday, April 10, when Neptune will be just 0.4 degrees northwest of Venus. Point your scope at brilliant Venus, and dim Neptune should be visible nearby.
Deep Sky Objects
Galaxies are plentiful in the spring sky, and some of the more prominent ones are listed below, but there are some closer targets worth finding as well. If you need directions, click on any of the links below to get printable star-hop charts for these objects.
Algieba (Gamma Leonis)
Double star in Leo
Gamma Leonis is a well known double star in the “sickle” portion of the constellation Leo. The brighter star appears orange or reddish, and the dimmer companion is yellow. The two stars are only 4.7 arcseconds apart, so fairly high magnification will help to separate the pair. They are about 130 light years away. Star-hop chart
Messier 3
Globular cluster in Canes Venatici
At magnitude 6.3, Messier 3 is one of the brightest globular clusters in the sky, and one of the most impressive to observe with an amateur telescope. It is about 33,000 light years away and contains about half a million stars. It has a very dense center. Medium to large telescopes will resolve countless stars around its periphery. Star-hop chart
Messier 44, the Beehive Cluster
Open cluster in Cancer
This is one of the nearest open clusters, about 610 light years away. It is visible to the naked eye as a large hazy patch in the center of the dim constellation Cancer, about twice the diameter of the full Moon. Because of its large size, it is best viewed through binoculars or a telescope at low power. Star-hop chart
Messier 95 and 96
Galaxies in Leo
These are two spiral galaxies, about 30 million light years away. They are only about 2/3 degree apart, so they should be visible side by side in a telescope with a low power eyepiece. Star-hop chart
Messier 59 and 60
Galaxies in Virgo
These two elliptical galaxies are part of the Coma-Virgo cluster of galaxies, about 60 million light years away. At around magnitudes 10 and 9, respectively, they should be visible in even small amateur telescopes. Just to the northwest of M60, almost touching it, is a dimmer spiral galaxy, NGC 4647. Star-hop chart
Messier 58, 89, and 90
Galaxies in Virgo
After viewing M59 and M60, it is just about a 1-degree hop to the west to find M58, and then hops of similar size to the north to find M90 and M89. M89 is an elliptical galaxy, whereas M58 and M90 are spirals. All of them are about 50 to 60 million light years away. Star-hop chart
Messier 104, the Sombrero Galaxy
Galaxy in Virgo
This iconic galaxy is a popular target for amateur astronomers. Its bright nucleus and sharply pointed arms are fairly easy to see. The lower half of the galaxy, below the broad dust lane, is dimmer and requires a reasonably dark sky to see well. Star-hop chart
Messier 106
Galaxy in Canes Venatici
This bright spiral galaxy is about 25 million light years away. At magnitude 8.4, its oblong shape can be seen in just about any telescope, and large scopes will reveal some of the structure of its spiral arms and dust lanes. The diameter of this galaxy is about 125,000 light years, which makes it larger than our own Milky Way galaxy. Star-hop chart