Around here, meteorologically at least, spring has been sort of hard to get a grip on.  We’ve gone from weeks of rain (very spring-y), to cold dreary late-winter holdouts interspersed with days of mid-summer 90-degree temps and high humidity.  It’s been a confusing time — and so it’s hard to really get a grip on the idea that summer doesn’t start until this week!  And our longest day of the year is less than a handful of days away!

But the stars don’t lie.  The Summer Triangle is rising in the east at sunset (led by Vega, and followed shortly by Deneb, below and to the left/north, with Aquila farther out to the right/south).  The Milky Way cuts right through this giant asterism, rising into the summer sky.

Father’s Day Crescent Moon – Evening of 6/17/18

Jupiter is still glowing brightly high in the southern sky, and Venus has been hanging out at roughly the same spot in the west for months now.  This week, Venus essentially stands still while the stars rotate past – and Venus passes right by the Beehive cluster in Cancer midweek.  Spotting the bright planet and the dim cluster side-by-side is a bit of a challenge, I’m sure, but I’m looking forward to giving it a try.

Thursday, light your bonfires and make merry – the true heat of summer is upon us, and the days will be getting shorter again.  How time flies…

Get Out There
Troy
http://www.flying-squirrel.org