"A Great Celestial Triangle Announces the Beginning of Summer, and: Your Last Chance to See Jupiter and Saturn this Close Until 2020"

Scheduled air date: 2000 Jun 19-25

Summer Solstice—the first day of Summer—occurs on June 20 (for the Northern Hemisphere) and marks the point when the Sun appears farthest North.  At the Tropic of Cancer, the Sun will appear directly overhead at noon, and for most of the Northern Hemisphere, this will mark the longest day and the shortest night of the year.

The "Summer Triangle" asterism can be seen in the East after sunset at this time of year.
(Shown about an hour after sunset for mid-Northern latitudes.)


The Waning Crescent Moon can be observed to pass by the giant planets Jupiter and Saturn—presently at their closest to each other for the next 20 years—over the last few mornings of June.
(Shown about half an hour before sunrise for mid-Northern latitudes.)

If you wish to view illustrations for other episodes, please see our Star Gazer Illustrated directory.

Illustrations on this page were created using TheSky Astronomy Software, an advanced desktop planetarium program designed for Windows. Copyright © 1999-2006 by Software Bisque, Inc.