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What constellations can be seen in the Summer?
Home » Astronomy » Identifying Constellations » What constellations can be seen in the Summer?During Summer Solstice the hours of daylight are longer for the northern hemisphere and shorter for the southern. The night skies have changed dramatically—the stars of Spring are setting and those of Fall will rise soon. Let’s look beginning around mid-June at 10:00 p.m.
In the northern hemisphere, faint box-shaped Ursa Minor stands directly above Polaris and Ursa Major northwest. Northeast is brilliant Vega—alpha in the faint parallelogram of Lyra. Overhead, orange Arcturus and faint kite-shaped Bootes command the zenith. West, the mighty Leo is diving towards the horizon head-first, and keystone-shaped Hercules has well risen east. Look for bright Spica on the ecliptic to guide you to Virgo. Exiting southwest is box-shaped Corvus. High southeast, bright red Antares and the long “J” of Scorpius begin to climb, followed by “teapot-shaped” Sagittarius rising southeast. Between Spica and Antares is faint triangle-shaped Libra.
In the southern hemisphere, Arcturus and Bootes are north with Leo setting northwest. Hercules is northeast with Aquila rising east. Overhead Virgo dances. Crux is southwest and Centaurus commands center stage. Scorpius moves higher south and the starry river of the Milky Way is pouring out of Sagittarius.
For both hemispheres, this is an exciting time as our galactic center now begins coming into view and the Milky Way (our own galactic arm) rises higher.
Related Identifying Constellations Articles
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- What constellations can be seen in the Spring?
- What constellations can be seen in the Summer?
- What constellations can be seen in the Fall?
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