Sunrise Sunset

Fri., June 3 5:08 8:10

Sat., June 4 5:08 8:11

Sun., June 5 5:08 8:12

Mon., June 6 5:07 8:12

Tues., June 7 5:07 8:13

Wed., June 8 5:07 8:15

Thurs., June 9 5:07 8:14

Fri., June 10 5:06 8:15

A thin crescent moon appears low in the southwestern sky after sunset tonight, when it is in the zodiacal constellation Gemini, moving into the constellation Cancer.

The moon will reach the first quarter on Wednesday in the zodiacal constellation Leo, then slipping in beside the ringed-planet Saturn on Thursday night.

In the starry June sky, the constellation Bootes has a brilliant orange star called Arcturus. If you are outdoors at 10 p.m., the bright star will be almost overhead. Arcturus is a huge star in the Milky Way. It is 37 light years away, considerably bigger than our sun and older too.

To be certain you’ve found Arcturus, find the Big Dipper high in the northwest; the four stars that make up the handle of the Big Dipper point to the orange star.

On Sunday night, the thin crescent moon appears near the bright star Regulus, in the zodiacal constellation Leo. Regulus appears high in the western sky early in the evening and hovers above the western horizon after 10 p.m. Regulus is 77 light years away. It resides in an area of the sky where an amateur astronomer can with little trouble look out beyond the Milky Way and see hundreds of galaxies.

To the left of Regulus is Saturn.

M.A.L.