"Skywatching Guide: Mercury Emerges, Planets Shift in June's Night Sky"

NASA has provided skywatching tips for June twenty twenty five, noting that Mercury becomes visible near the western horizon late in the month for those with a clear view. Venus and Saturn are parting ways in the dawn sky, with Venus rising about two hours before sunrise and shining brightly in the east, while Saturn rises earlier each morning and moves higher in the sky as the month progresses. Mars is visible in the west for a couple of hours after sunset, passing very close to the star Regulus in the constellation Leo on June sixteenth and seventeenth. Jupiter, meanwhile, is visible low in the west after sunset during the first week of June, but then it disappears in the Sun’s glare until it returns to the morning sky in July according to NASA. Attention in the planetary science community has also turned to NASA’s budget, which is under intense scrutiny. Northeastern University reports that proposed budget reductions could have major consequences for American science. Experts warn that severe cuts to NASA’s funding could undercut long-term U.S. leadership in planetary exploration, potentially delaying or jeopardizing future missions. This comes at a time when planetary science data from ongoing and historic missions are still being actively released and analyzed. The Planetary Exploration Newsletter details that in May, NASA’s Planetary Data System released newly ingested data from missions such as the Peregrine lander, Pioneer ten and eleven, and New Horizons’ Pluto flyby. These releases expand the scientific community’s access to crucial information about the outer solar system. In terms of recent discoveries, the University of Warwick reports a significant breakthrough: astronomers have found a giant planet orbiting a tiny red dwarf star. This discovery challenges prevailing theories about planet formation, since such a large planet was not expected to exist around such a small star. It highlights the continued potential for surprising discoveries in exoplanet research, which is a major focus of U.S. planetary science efforts. Looking ahead, major missions and events are scheduled in the coming weeks. SpaceX is preparing for its Polaris Dawn mission, with the goal of conducting the first all-civilian spacewalk this summer, while NASA and Boeing are planning the return of astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams aboard the Starliner spacecraft following additional testing and a delayed departure from the International Space Station. The Planetary Society also notes China’s planned Tianwen-2 launch to study both a near-Earth asteroid and a main belt comet, representing an important international development in planetary science. These news items underscore a period of both excitement and uncertainty for planetary science in the U.S., as researchers grapple with new discoveries, ongoing missions, and the impacts of potential funding changes. This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.