1. Space News Update - May 31, 2019 - In the News Departments Story 1:
NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover Finds a Clay Cache
Story 2:
Chandra Finds Stellar Duos Banished from Galaxies
Story 3:
NICER’s Night Moves Trace the X-ray Sky
Departments
The Night Sky
ISS Sighting Opportunities
NASA-TV Highlights
Space Calendar
Food for Thought
Space Image of the Week

2. NASA's Curiosity Mars Rover Finds a Clay Cache
In this computer graphic, NASA's Voyager 1 probe, moving toward upper left, nears the edge of the sun's influence, flying through a region of space dominated by a "magnetic highway" that helps mediate the flow of particles into and out of the solar system. The region includes particles from the sun's southern hemisphere that have been forced northward by the pressure of the interstellar wind. Voyager 1 is expected to cross the boundary into interstellar space sometime within the next few years if not sooner. (Credit: NASA)

3. Chandra Finds Stellar Duos Banished from Galaxies

4. NICER’s Night Moves Trace the X-ray Sky

5. The Night Sky Sky & Telescope Friday, May 31
• The Dipper Twist. Constellations seem to twist around fast when they pass your zenith — if you're comparing them to the direction "down," i.e. away from the zenith. Just a week and a half ago, the Big Dipper floated horizontally in late twilight an hour after sunset (as seen from 40° N latitude). Now it's angled diagonally at that time. In another week and a half it will be hanging straight down by its handle!
Saturday, June 1
• "Cassiopeia" doesn't always mean "Cold." Late fall and winter are when this landmark constellation, almost opposite the Big Dipper across Polaris, stands high overhead in the evening (seen from mid-northern latitudes). But even on warm June evenings it lurks low. As twilight fades out, look for it near the north horizon: a wide, upright W, as shown here.
The farther north you are the higher it'll appear. But even as far south as San Diego and Atlanta it's completely above the true horizon.
Sunday, June 2
• Capella sets in the northwest soon after dark, depending on your latitude. That leaves Vega and Arcturus as the brightest stars of the evening. Vega shines in the east, icy blue-white. Arcturus is very high toward the south, pale yellow-orange.
Monday, June 3
• This is the time of year when Leo the Lion walks downward toward the west, on his way to departing into the sunset in early summer, as shown below. Right after dark spot the brightest star fairly high in the west. That's Regulus, his forefoot.
• New Moon (exact at 6:02 a.m. on this date).
Tuesday, June 4
• About 30 or 40 minutes after sunset, scan very low in the west-northwest for the hair-thin Moon. About 6° to the right of it is Mercury.
Sky & Telescope

6. ISS Sighting Opportunities
ISS For Denver:
Date
Visible
Max Height
Appears
Disappears
Fri May 31, 9:30 PM
4 min
19°
15° above N
10° above ENE
Fri May 31, 11:06 PM
1 min
35°
15° above WNW
35° above WNW
Sat Jun 1, 10:17 PM
2 min
59°
27° above NW
52° above ENE
Sun Jun 2, 9:28 PM
24° above NNW
15° above E
Sun Jun 2, 11:03 PM
20°
11° above WNW
20° above W
Mon Jun 3, 10:14 PM
3 min
47°
18° above WNW
43° above SSW
Tue Jun 4, 9:26 PM
89°
35° above NW
17° above SE
Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

7. NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Time Zone)
MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013
NASA
MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013
NASA
MAVEN Launch November 18, 2013
NASA
NASA-TV Highlights
(all times Eastern Time Zone)
May 31, Friday 10:20 a.m. – International Space Station In-Flight Event for the Canadian Space Agency in Umijaq, Northern Quebec and astronaut David Saint-Jacques of CSA (Public Channel with interpretation; Media Channel in native language) 11:30 a.m. – SpaceCast Weekly (All Channels) 1 p.m. – NASA Science Live: Announcement of the Selection of Science Commercial Moon Landing Services (All Channels) 3:45 p.m. - Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) Announcement Live Shots (Media Channel)
June 3, Monday 11:45 a.m. – Coverage of the release of the SpaceX CRS-17 Dragon cargo craft and departure from the International Space Station; release scheduled at 12:05 p.m. EDT (All Channels) 1:40 p.m. – International Space Station Educational In-Flight Event with the Asbury Elementary School in Fairview, Pennsylvania, and NASA astronaut Christina Koch (All Channels)
Watch NASA TV online by going to the NASA website

8. Space Calendar JPL Space Calendar
May 31 - Comet 191P/McNaught At Opposition (3.202 AU)
May 31 - Comet 156P/Russell-LINEAR At Opposition (3.344 AU)
May 31 - Comet 108P/Ciffreo At Opposition (4.225 AU)
May 31 - Dwarf Planet Ceres Occults UCAC  (12.1 Magnitude Star)
May 31 - [May 31] Amor Asteroid 2019 KJ2 Near-Earth Flyby (0.035 AU)
May 31 - Asteroid Jerusalem Closest Approach To Earth (1.486 AU)
May 31 - Asteroid 301 Bavaria Closest Approach To Earth (1.543 AU)
May 31 - Asteroid 3001 Michelangelo Closest Approach To Earth (1.556 AU)
May 31 - Asteroid 4327 Ries Closest Approach To Earth (1.629 AU)
May 31 - Asteroid Cassini Closest Approach To Earth (2.496 AU)
Jun 01 - [May 25] Comet C/2019 JU6 (ATLAS) Perihelion (2.046 AU)
Jun 01 - Comet 230P/LINEAR At Opposition (4.278 AU)
Jun 01 - [May 31] Amor Asteroid 2019 KL2 Near-Earth Flyby (0.022 AU)
Jun 01 - [May 28] Amor Asteroid 2019 KU Near-Earth Flyby (0.041 AU)
Jun 01 - Asteroid 4923 Clarke Closest Approach To Earth (0.840 AU)
Jun 01 - Amor Asteroid 3551 Verenia Closest Approach To Earth (1.389 AU)
Jun 01 - Asteroid 3123 Dunham Closest Approach To Earth (1.472 AU)
Jun 01 - Neptune Trojan 2010 TT191 At Opposition ( AU)
Jun 01 - Plutino (2007 JH43) At Opposition ( AU)
Jun 02 - [May 29] Apollo Asteroid 2019 KH1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.027 AU)
Jun 02 - Asteroid 1024 Hale Closest Approach To Earth (2.080 AU)
Jun 03 - [May 27] Dragon CRS-17 Return to Earth (International Space Station)
Jun 03 - Comet 202P/Scotti At Opposition (3.922 AU)
Jun 03 - [May 29] Apollo Asteroid 2012 KZ41 Near-Earth Flyby (0.010 AU)
Jun 03 - Asteroid 2398 Jilin Closest Approach To Earth (1.860 AU)
Jun 03 - Asteroid Nicaragua Closest Approach To Earth (1.867 AU)
Jun 03 - Asteroid Yarkovsky Closest Approach To Earth (2.117 AU)
Jun 03 - Asteroid 1877 Marsden Closest Approach To Earth (2.402 AU)
Jun 03 - David Gregory's 360th Birthday (1659)
JPL Space Calendar

9. Food for Thought
Flashes on the Moon

10. Sunrise at Copernicus Crater Image Credit & Copyright: Sage Gray
Space Image of the Week
Sunrise at Copernicus Crater  Image Credit & Copyright: Sage Gray