1. Venus Passes Close to Saturn! A rare, once-in-16-year planetary conjunction will be visible on Saturday and Sunday evening. The planets Venus and Saturn will come so close together that they will be visible through a telescope in the same field of view. This will not happen again in Irish evening skies until January 2023. Roughly one Moon-diameter (just over half a degree) will separate them this weekend with Saturn sitting just above Venus. Saturn is about 100 times dimmer than Venus, but once evening twilight begins to fade you should have no difficulty spotting it with the naked eye. The Venus-Saturn conjunction is only a line-of-sight effect. Whereas Venus is very close - 80 million km away, Saturn is 20 times as distant. Venus is currently a thick crescent through a telescope, but as it moves between the Sun and Earth over the coming weeks it will widen and become a thin crescent - a sight worth catching as it only occurs every few years. See the diagrams in the June and the July issues of our magazine, both are on page 26. Even simple cameras should record the scene in twilight every evening. Email observe@astronomy.ie and tell us what you see. In a telescope, the view of Saturn (with its rings) and Venus (a growing crescent) both being visible in the same field of viewing should be stunning. You can then watch Venus' crescent swell in size and become an even thinner cresent as it closes in on Earth during July. This too is quite rare and you'll only see Venus as a big thin crescent for a few weeks every few years so get your telescope out every clear night. Saturn will sink in to the Sun's glare soon so get your last telescopic views of its rings and moons now. Jupiter is also on view to the south during the evening. The Moon was near it on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Seen in a telescope it is perhaps the best planet to view with its 4 main moons always providing interest and its cloud belts and Great Red Spot (times to see it are in the magazine's Sky Diary pages). Add in the Moon being in evening skies every 2 weeks and there is a lot of planetary viewing to be done with telescopes in the coming weeks! if you don't get Ireland's only monthly colour astronomy magazine, with details of these and many other sights you might miss, please do so now at www.astronomy.ie/sub and call our Shop staff for advice on choosing and using a telescope 6 days a week on (01) 847 0777 2. Blue Moon on Saturday The Full Moon on Saturday June 30 is the second Full Moon of the month. This "second Full Moon in the same calendar month" is some times referred to as a "Blue Moon" from the expression "once in a blue Moon" because only every 2 or 3 years is there a month that has two Full Moons. Despite the title the Moon will not change colour. The Full Moon will be very low on the horizon. To many people it will appear larger than when high in the sky, however, this is just an optical illusion. If you stand with your back to the Full Moon, bend over and view it upside-down between your legs, it should appear normal sized again. Try this, and let us know if this breaks the illusion by emailing observe@astronomy.ie 3. Mars Dust Storm To see the planet Mars you will have to get up around dawn, and the planet is still a fairly small (8 arcsecond) disk in a telescope. But experts around the world are reporting that a dust storm has appeared on the planet. It started in the Hellas basin and is moving West. Owners of larger telescopes should check this out and email observe@astronomy.ie. Mars is coming closer to Earth and will be a spectacular naked eye sight later in the year. 4. Coming Events: All July: See JWST (Hubble's successor) in Ireland!!! www.dias.ie/index.php?section=general&subsection=JWST Or make a paper model of JWST!: www.jwst.nasa.gov/papermodel.html (See our picture www.astronomy.ie/DMJMJWST.jpg ) July 9: Lecture (&DVD nationwide) "Birth of Stars & Planets" www.astronomy.ie/lecture200707.html July 11: Evening Class special offer ends, save 50euro now www.astronomy.ie/eveningclass.html Sept. 8: Star-B-Q - Ireland's Biggest Annual Astro Event. For everyone in Ireland! Book now, save 10euro: www.astronomy.ie/sbq Astronomy Ireland www.astronomy.ie Telescope Advice Monday to Saturday: Tel (01) 847 0777