In June 2023, several notable events and astronomical phenomena occurred:

• On June 1-2, Mars was in the Beehive Cluster (M44), a well-known open star cluster in the constellation Cancer. This made for excellent viewing with binoculars or a small telescope, showing Mars surrounded by faint stars

• June 3 featured the Full Strawberry Moon, which rose around sunset in the constellation Scorpius near the bright star Antares

• June 4 marked Venus at its greatest eastern elongation from the Sun, at 45°

• On June 21, the June Solstice occurred, which is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the shortest in the Southern Hemisphere. On the same evening, the crescent Moon formed a grouping with Venus and Mars in the western sky after sunset

• Throughout June, Venus and Mars appeared close in the western sky at dusk, with Venus chasing Mars but not catching up by month's end

• Saturn was bright and visible in the early morning hours in the constellation Aquarius, best seen around 3:30-4 a.m.

• Jupiter appeared low in the eastern sky in Aries during morning twilight mid-month, with a notable conjunction with the waning crescent Moon on June 14

Regarding the calendar, June 2023 included weeks 22 to 26, with June 1 falling in week 22 (May 29 - June 4) and June 30 in week 26 (June 26 - July 2)

. Overall, June 2023 featured a rich variety of celestial events, including planetary alignments, moon phases, and the summer solstice marking the start of astronomical summer in the Northern Hemisphere