Space News Update - June 23, In the News Story 1: New from New Horizons: Increasing Variety on Pluto's Close Approach Hemisphere, and a 'Dark Pole' on Charon Story 2: Veteran NASA Spacecraft Nears 60,000th Lap Around Mars, No Pit Stops Story 3: Story 3: Detecting exoplanets close to their host star Departments The Night Sky ISS Sighting Opportunities Space Calendar NASA-TV Highlights Food for Thought Space Image of the Week

New from New Horizons: Increasing Variety on Pluto's Close Approach Hemisphere, and a 'Dark Pole' on Charon

Veteran NASA Spacecraft Nears 60,000th Lap Around Mars, No Pit Stops 1.Ratchet Wrench ‘ ed’ to Space Station

Detecting exoplanets close to their host star

The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Tuesday, June 23 As night falls, look for the Big Dipper hanging straight down in the northwest. Its bottom two stars, the Pointers, point to the right toward modest Polaris, the handle-end of the Little Dipper. Most of the Little Dipper is very dim. This is the time of year when it floats straight upward from Polaris when nightfall is complete — like a helium balloon escaped from some June evening party. Wednesday, June 24 The Summer Triangle looms high in the east after dark. Its top star is bright Vega. Deneb is the brightest star to Vega's lower left (by 2 or 3 fists at arm's length). Look for Altair a greater distance to Vega's lower right. First-quarter Moon (exact at 7:02 a.m. EDT). Friday, June 26 Venus and Jupiter, shining in the west as twilight fades, are now only 2.2° apart! That's about the width of your thumb held at arm's length. They point to fainter Regulus, twinkling to their upper left. Watch the two planets move closer together each evening until their appulse (closest approach) on Tuesday June 30th. That evening they'll be just 1/3° apart, seven times closer than they appear now! In reality, they're not close together at all. Venus is 51 million miles from Earth this evening; Jupiter is eleven times farther at 561 million miles. Thursday, June 25 Look for pale bluish Spica below the Moon this evening. Four-star Corvus is much farther below them and perhaps a bit right. The brightest star shining very high above the Moon is Arcturus.

ISS Sighting Opportunities Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting InformationSatellite Sighting Information No sightings for Denver

NASA-TV Highlights Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA websiteNASA website MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013 NASA 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 23 - Science Channel and NASA Present: A Conversation with Astronaut Reid Wiseman (all channels) (all times Eastern Time Zone)

Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar Jun 23 - Comet 208P/McMillan Closest Approach To Earth (2.413 AU)Comet 208P/McMillanClosest Approach To Earth Jun 23 - Comet 298P/Christensen Closest Approach To Earth (2.982 AU)Comet 298P/ChristensenClosest Approach To Earth Jun 23 - Asteroid 2015 KK57 Near-Earth Flyby (0.021 AU)Asteroid 2015 KK57Near-Earth Flyby Jun 23 - [Jun 17] Asteroid 2015 LM24 Near-Earth Flyby (0.056 AU)Asteroid 2015 LM24Near-Earth Flyby Jun 23 - Asteroid 4330 Vivaldi Closest Approach To Earth (1.290 AU)Asteroid 4330 Vivaldi Jun 23 - Centaur Object Amycus At Opposition ( AU)Centaur Object AmycusAt Opposition Jun 23 - SpaceUp GLIC, Munich, GermanySpaceUp GLIC Jun 23 - [Jun 22] Webcast: Entrepreneurial Space PanelWebcast: Entrepreneurial Space Panel Jun 23 - Jaume Nomen's 55th Birthday (1960)Jaume Nomen's Jun 23 - Donn Eisele's 85th Birthday (1930)Donn Eisele's Jun 24 - Mercury At Its Greatest Western Elongation (22 Degrees)MercuryElongation Jun 24 - Comet C/2015 H1 (Bressi) At Opposition (1.475 AU)Comet C/2015 H1 (Bressi)At Opposition Jun 24 - [Jun 21] Asteroid 2015 MN11 Near-Earth Flyby (0.032 AU)Asteroid 2015 MN11Near-Earth Flyby Jun 24 - Asteroid 8299 Tealeoni Closest Approach To Earth (0.946 AU)Asteroid 8299 Tealeoni Jun 24 - Asteroid Krakatau Closest Approach To Earth (0.980 AU)Asteroid Krakatau Jun 24 - Asteroid 5011 Ptah Closest Approach To Earth (1.634 AU)Asteroid 5011 PtahClosest Approach To Earth Jun 24 - [Jun 22] Webcast: Arthur C. Clarke Panel - Where Space Meets Popular CultureWebcast: Arthur C. Clarke Panel - Where Space Meets Popular Culture Jun 24 - Fred Hoyle's 100th Birthday (1915)Fred Hoyle's Jun 24 - Edwin Coddington's 145th Birthday (1870)Edwin Coddington's Jun 25 - Comet P/2009 WX51 (Catalina) Perihelion (0.796 AU)Comet P/2009 WX51 (Catalina)Perihelion Jun 25 - Comet 86P/Wild Closest Approach To Earth (1.338 AU)Comet 86P/WildClosest Approach To Earth Jun 25 - Comet 233P/La Sagra Perihelion (1.787 AU)Comet 233P/La SagraPerihelion Jun 25 - Comet P/2007 R3 (Gibbs) Closest Approach To Earth (2.349 AU)Comet P/2007 R3 (Gibbs)Closest Approach To Earth Jun 25 - Comet 188P/LINEAR-Mueller At Opposition (3.343 AU)Comet 188P/LINEAR-MuellerAt Opposition Jun 25 - [Jun 23] Asteroid 2015 MA54 Near-Earth Flyby (0.017 AU)Asteroid 2015 MA54Near-Earth Flyby Jun 25 - Asteroid 2007 WU3 Near-Earth Flyby (0.043 AU)Asteroid 2007 WU3Near-Earth Flyby Jun 25 - Asteroid 2010 NY65 Near-Earth Flyby (0.044 AU)Asteroid 2010 NY65Near-Earth Flyby Jun 25 - [Jun 17] Asteroid 2015 LK24 Near-Earth Flyby (0.052 AU)Asteroid 2015 LK24Near-Earth Flyby Jun 25 - Asteroid 7707 Yes Closest Approach To Earth (1.463 AU)Asteroid 7707 Yes Jun 25 - Asteroid Rikhill Closest Approach To Earth (2.168 AU)Asteroid Rikhill Jun 25 - [Jun 22] Webcast: John Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and the American Space ProgramWebcast: John Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and the American Space Program Jun 25 - Rupert Wildt's 110th Birthday (1905)Rupert Wildt's Jun 26 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #414 (OTM-414)Cassini Jun 26 - [Jun 23] Comet C/2015 M1 (PANSTARRS) Closest Approach To Earth (1.153 AU)Comet C/2015 M1 (PANSTARRS)Closest Approach To Earth Jun 26 - Asteroid 2014 OL339 Closest Approach To Earth (0.272 AU)Asteroid 2014 OL339 Jun 26 - Asteroid Wikipedia Closest Approach To Earth (1.141 AU)Asteroid Wikipedia Jun 26 - Asteroid 2023 Asaph Closest Approach To Earth (1.839 AU)Asteroid 2023 Asaph Jun 26 - Asteroid 5035 Swift Closest Approach To Earth (2.016 AU)Asteroid 5035 Swift Jun 26 - Asteroid 7554 Johnspencer Closest Approach To Earth (2.309 AU)Asteroid 7554 Johnspencer Jun 26 - David Morrison's 75th Birthday (1940)David Morrison's Jun 26 - Charles Messier's 285th Birthday (1730)Charles Messier's

Food for Thought Astronomers discover more than 800 dark galaxies in the famous Coma Cluster New Technique Puts Exoplanets on the Scale

Space Image of the Week Aurora Borealis Comes To Colorado Image credit: Jim NelsonJim Nelson