Locate Polaris Australis, the ‘South star’, and the False Comet, a collection of stars in Scorpius
When to use this chart
1 June at 00:00 AEST (14:00 UT)
15 June at 23:00 AEST (13:00 UT)
31 June at 22:00 AEST (12:00 UT)
The chart accurately matches the sky on the dates and times shown for Sydney, Australia. The sky is different at other times as the stars crossing it set four minutes earlier each night.
June highlights
Recommended equipment: Naked eye
Mercury makes a return to the morning sky in June. Mid-month it reaches a maximum altitude of 10° an hour before sunrise. On the 22nd, Mercury gives Taurus’s face (the Hyades) a bright left ‘eye’ (Aldebaran (Alpha (α) Tauri) being the right ‘eye’). Observe Mercury’s changes through a small scope. On the 5th it shows a thin phase, 10.6 arcseconds across (at mag. +2.0); by the 25th the disc has shrunk to 6.8 arcseconds and its phase grows to a first quarter Moon shape.
Stars and constellations
Recommended equipment: Binoculars
We may know the False Cross, but have you heard of the False Comet? It lies within the Fishhook asterism in Scorpius (the tail of the Scorpion south of Epsilon (ε) Scorpii). Best observed through small binoculars, its bright ‘head’ is the compact open star cluster NGC 6231 on the 90° bend of the Scorpion’s tail. The False Comet’s tail is formed by the adjacent, large (2°) open star cluster Collinder 316, which stretches off in the direction of the double star, Mu (μ) Scorpii.
The planets
Recommended equipment: Naked eye
The early evening has no planetary action until Saturn’s arrival, rising around 22:00 midmonth. Next to appear is Neptune about midnight, followed by Jupiter an hour later. Jupiter and Mars commence June 1.5° apart. They slowly separate as Jupiter gains altitude, closing the month 20° apart. Switching closer to dawn, Venus dominates the northeastern sky, with Mercury making a brief visit (see above). Uranus returns to the morning, passing Venus on the 12th (1.5° apart).
Deep-sky objects
Recommended equipment: Binoculars
The South Celestial Pole (SCP) has its own Polaris, but 3 magnitudes fainter than the Northern Hemisphere one. Sigma (ς) Octantis (RA = 21hr 8.3min, dec. = -88° 57’) or Polaris Australis, lies 1° from the SCP. It forms a trapezium (3° long) with three other mag. +5.5 stars. Mid-June evenings find this asterism orientated with Sigma in the top right position then, going clockwise, Tau (τ), Upsilon (υ) and Chi (χ) Octantis (top left).
Recommended equipment: Large telescope
Moving 6° north from Chi (χ) Octantis finds a distinctive binocular double of Pi1 and Pi2 Octantis. This pretty, matched pair of mag. +5.6 yellow stars are 0.2° apart. Continue northwards by 0.9° and you’ll find globular cluster IC 4499 (RA= 15hr 0.3min, dec. = -82° 13’) in Apus, the Bird of Paradise. This 10th magnitude cluster is a faint glow (5 arcminutes across) with central brightening and a mag. +10.2 star on its southwestern edge.