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Ephemeris: 06/15/2026 – Spotting the elusive planet Mercury

June 15, 2026 Leave a comment

This is Ephemeris for Monday, June 15th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 9:30, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 10:47 this evening.

Today is Mercury’s greatest elongations or separation east of the sun, which means it trails the sun as the earth rotates and sets in the evening sky after sunset. The separation angle from the sun is better than we get when eastern elongations are closer to the vernal equinox. However, the angle of Mercury with respect to the sun is actually a little bit less than 45° rather than 60 plus degrees, that occurs near the vernal equinox. This is the last semi-decent appearance of Mercury in the evening this year. Our best hope of seeing Mercury again this year is in the morning sky around August 2nd. Personally I find that Mercury seems to be easier to find when it’s appearing in the morning sky rather than in the evening sky.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Looking into the western sky after sunset at the planets Venus, Jupiter and Mercury, and the tiny sliver of the one-day-old Moon, at the end of civil twilight. In our Grand Traverse area that is 10:07 PM. The end of civil twilight is when the sun drops to 6° below the horizon. The interval between sunset and the end of civil twilight depends on one's latitude and the time of year. For us, it's 37 minutes. This is the time to start looking for Mercury using Venus and Jupiter to point to it. At this time for our area it is nearly 10° above the western horizon. It will set at 11:13 PM.
Looking into the western sky after sunset at the planets Venus, Jupiter and Mercury, and the tiny sliver of the one-day-old Moon, at the end of civil twilight. In our Grand Traverse area that is 10:07 PM. The end of civil twilight is when the sun drops to 6° below the horizon. The interval between sunset and the end of civil twilight depends on one’s latitude and the time of year. For us, it’s 37 minutes. This is the time to start looking for Mercury using Venus and Jupiter to point to it. At this time for our area it is nearly 10° above the western horizon. It will set at 11:13 PM. Thew orrange line is the Ecliptic or path of the sun and plane of the earth’s orbit.

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