June 13
The Unnamed Shore
Sun Position
The Sun is in Gemini, declination near +23.3°. Northern days remain near maximum length; Virgo sets in the west as the sky darkens.
Sky Highlight
No major meteor shower peaks today. Virgo's galaxy cluster reaches its best evening placement in May, but several of its galaxies remain accessible in June evenings for observers with telescopes, particularly from the Northern Hemisphere.
Deep Sky Object
M49 (NGC 4472), an elliptical galaxy roughly 55 million light-years away. M49 in Virgo is the brightest galaxy in the Virgo Cluster and was the first Virgo Cluster member to be discovered, by Charles Messier in 1771; it is a massive elliptical galaxy containing thousands of globular clusters. Still well-placed in June evenings from the Northern Hemisphere; lower and more challenging from southern latitudes.
Featured Star
Heze (ζ Vir) is a white main-sequence star (A3V) about 74 light-years away in the body of Virgo; its name appears in medieval star catalogs but its origin is uncertain. A plain, honest A-type star, unremarkable in every way except that it has kept its ancient name for a thousand years without anyone quite knowing why.
Around This Date
- June 13, 1983Pioneer 10 passed beyond Neptune's orbital distance, becoming the first spacecraft to travel beyond the known planets.
- June 14, 1967NASA launched Mariner 5 to Venus, which flew by the planet in October 1967 and returned data on its atmosphere and magnetic environment.
Some stars hold names whose meanings were lost before the telescope was invented.