June 2026
Compiled by John Panek
Monthly Highlights
Supermassive black holes swallow matter but also drive powerful winds from their accretion disks via magnetic forces. For 50 years, scientists searched in vain for such a wind from our galaxy's central black hole, Sagittarius A*. New ALMA observations have finally detected it: a large cone-shaped clearing (at least 1 parsec long, ~45 degree opening) in the cold molecular gas near Sgr A*, proving the black hole is actively blowing a wind. https://www.universetoday.com/articles/theyve-been-searching-for-the-milky-ways-black-hole-wind-for-50-years-and-finally-found-it
Venus and Jupiter will have a 1.6 degree conjunction in the dusk of June 9. Look to the west-northwest around 45 minutes to 2 hours after sunset
A reanalysis of 2013 Hubble observations of Europa has changed scientists' minds about the evidence of water plumes escaping from the surface. A new comprehensive reanalysis by Lorenz Roth and colleagues concludes the original signal was likely a statistical fluke caused by a small positioning error on Hubble's detector and an unrecognized global hydrogen exosphere around the moon. After corrections, the apparent plume signature disappeared into the background noise. While transient plumes are not ruled out and Galileo flyby data remains debated, the solid evidence for Europa's plumes has now vanished. The Europa Clipper mission in 2030 should provide clarity. https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/evidence-of-water-plumes-from-jupiters-moon-europa-vanishes/
The LINK robotic servicing spacecraft, built by Katalyst Space, arrived at NASA Wallops on June 5 to capture and boost the aging Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory.Swift has been losing altitude faster than expected due to atmospheric drag, intensified by recent solar activity.Northrop Grumman will integrate LINK into a Pegasus XL rocket for an air launch from Kwajalein Atoll later this month.This mission pioneers satellite servicing capabilities and will allow the 21-year-old observatory to resume science operations. . https://science.nasa.gov/blogs/swift/2026/06/05/robotic-spacecraft-for-swift-boost-mission-arrives-at-nasa-wallops/
Skywatching
Lunar Phases:
Third Quarter on June 8
New Moon on June 15
First Quarter on June 21
Full Moon on June 30
Planets:
Evening Skies
Venus: The brightest planet in the sky shines dazzlingly in the west-northwest shortly after sunset
Jupiter: The second-brightest evening planet, which gets intensely close to Venus during a spectacular conjunction in early June
Mercury: Sits much lower to the western horizon and is slightly more difficult to spot in the twilight glow.
Morning Skies
Mars & Saturn: Pre-dawn observers can spot orange Mars in the east/southeast and Saturn higher up, spanning out before sunrise
The "String of Pearls": During the second half of June, all five naked-eye planets will be visible at the same time just before sunrise, forming a line in their true orbital order from the Sun (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn).
Comets:
Nothing good in the northern hemisphere this month, unfortunately
220P/McNaught went through a large outburst, brightening to magnitude 9 or so. It can be best seen in Pisces around 3am-5am local time.
Meteor Showers
Nothing impressive this month - get ready for the Perseids in July!
ISS Passes
Brightness Start Highest point End
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
2-Jun -1.3 20:36:58 10° W 20:39:14 17° SW 20:41:30 10° S
12-Jun -1.1 6:00:49 10° SSE 6:02:46 15° SE 6:04:43 10° E
14-Jun -3.3 5:58:18 10° SSW 6:01:34 59° SE 6:04:52 10° NE
15-Jun -2 5:10:56 17° S 5:12:40 26° SE 5:15:30 10° ENE
16-Jun -1 4:24:04 12° ESE 4:24:04 12° ESE 4:25:11 10° E
16-Jun -2.6 5:57:05 10° WSW 6:00:07 32° NW 6:03:09 10° NNE
17-Jun -3.8 5:09:52 41° WSW 5:10:52 72° NW 5:14:11 10° NE
18-Jun -2.2 4:22:37 33° ENE 4:22:37 33° ENE 4:24:47 10° NE
18-Jun. -1.2 5:57:27 10° NW 5:58:25 11° NW 5:59:23 10° NNW
19-Jun. -1.9 5:08:02 18° WNW 5:08:47 20° NW 5:11:19 10° N
20-Jun -1.9 4:20:25 27° N 4:20:25 27° N 4:22:18 10° NNE
21-Jun. -0.2 3:32:39 11° NE 3:32:39 11° NE 3:32:48 10° NE
22-Jun -0.9 4:17:31 12° NNW 4:17:31 12° NNW 4:18:09 10° N
Space Agency News
NASA (ISS): The Zvezda service module’s PrK transfer tunnel has had cracks and small air leaks since 2019. During Progress cargo operations the week of June 1, the leak rate increased to two pounds per day, with new suspected leak sites identified.Roscosmos planned a structural repair on Friday that involved cutting a bracket, leading NASA to place the Crew-12 astronauts and Chris Williams in safe haven inside the SpaceX Dragon.Roscosmos later paused the repair to conduct additional inspections and data analysis. NASA supported the decision, and the crew has returned to normal operations.The agencies continue working together with international partners to resolve the issue. https://www.nasa.gov/blogs/spacestation/2026/06/05/nasa-provides-update-on-space-station-leak/
JAXA: Japan’s MMX mission, set to launch from Tanegashima in November or December 2026, will land on Phobos, collect the first samples from a Martian moon, and return them to Earth while also performing a Deimos flyby and Mars climate observations.The primary goal is to determine whether Phobos and Deimos are captured asteroids or formed from a giant impact on Mars. https://www.mmx.jaxa.jp/en/
ISRO: Scientists from PRL Ahmedabad, using Chandrayaan-2’s Dual Frequency SAR, have found strong radar evidence of subsurface ice in four doubly shadowed craters in the lunar South Pole.The study identifies ice signatures through high Circular Polarization Ratio (>1) combined with low Degree of Polarization (<0.13), distinguishing ice from rough terrain.One 1.1 km crater inside Faustini shows particularly clear evidence, supported by both radar data and lobate-rim morphology suggesting the impact excavated buried ice. https://www.isro.gov.in/Chandrayaan2_Dual_Frequency_Synthetic_Aperture_Radar.html