Welcome to SkyEye, your guide to this month's celestial events. All times and dates are given in Universal Time (UT). Daily darkness estimates are calculated for Greenwich, London (51.5° N, 0° W).
Calendar of Events - March
| Date | Event |
|---|
| 4 | Thu |
Mercury at superior conjunction |
| Jupiter at opposition |
| 6 | Sat |
Full Moon |
| 12 | Fri |
Moon at perigee |
| 13 | Sat |
Last Quarter Moon |
| If the peak of the Gamma Normids meteor shower occurs today, then the Last Quarter Moon will seriously interfere with viewing. However, some experts feel that a later peak takes place on the 17th. |
| 20 | Sat |
Our planet reaches an equinox, heralding spring in the northern hemisphere and the onset of autumn in the southern hemisphere. |
| New Moon |
| 26 | Fri |
Moon occults Mars |
| Saturn at east quadrature |
| 27 | Sat |
Moon at apogee |
| 28 | Sun |
First Quarter Moon |
| 29 | Mon |
Mercury at greatest elongation east |
| Venus at greatest elongation east |
The Solar System
The word planet is derived from the Greek word for "wanderer." Unlike the background stars, planets seem to move around the sky, keeping mostly to a narrow track called the ecliptic, the path of the Sun across the stars.
By the end of the month, the five brightest naked-eye planets will be visible simultaneously around nightfall.
- Sun
- Location: Aquarius -> Pisces
The best time to view the southern polar region of the Sun is early this month.
- Comet C/2001 Q4 (NEAT)
- Location: Tucana
This comet is expected to reach naked-eye visibility by the middle of the month.
- Comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR)
- Location: Pisces
Yet another comet is expected to reach naked-eye visibility by the middle of the month.
- Mercury
- Location: Aquarius -> Pisces -> Aries
Out of sight for a few days as it undergoes superior conjunction with the Sun, the smallest inner planet reappears by mid-month as an evening sky object. Northern hemisphere observers will see it climb rapidly and it will be quite high in the west after sunset by the end of the month. However, it will remain stubbornly close to the horizon for those wishing to catch a glimpse of it from the southern hemisphere.
- Venus
- Location: Pisces -> Aries - > Taurus
Venus is well placed for viewing in the northern hemisphere; it is high in the west at sunset and continuing to rise. However, the "evening star" is not so spectacular for southern hemisphere observers as it is lower in the sky and slowly descending.
- Mars
- Location: Aries -> Taurus
Greenland is the place to be to see the occultation of Mars by the Moon at around 24 UT on 25 March (or 0 UT on 26 March). Look for the red planet in the evening because it sets just before midnight.
- Jupiter
- Location: Leo
The largest planet in the solar system reaches opposition early this month and consequently is visible virtually all night.
- Saturn
- Location: Gemini
Quadrature is the most interesting time to observe Saturn and the interplay of shadows between the planet, its satellites and its rings. See it before it sets in the early morning hours.
- Uranus
- Location: Aquarius
This distant gas giant was at conjunction late last month and is probably still too close to the Sun to be seen.
- Neptune
- Location: Capricornus
Faint Neptune may be lost in the solar glare in eastern skies just before sunrise.
- Pluto
- Location: Serpens (Cauda)
With a brightness of around fourteenth magnitude, the smallest planet in the solar system can be seen only through a good-sized telescope. Look for it in the eastern sky after midnight.
The Celestial Sphere
Constellations are patterns of stars in the sky. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recognises 88 different constellations. The brightest stars as seen from the Earth are easy to spot but do you know their proper names? With a set of binoculars you can look for fainter objects such as nebulae and galaxies or some of the closest stars to the Sun.
Descriptions of the sky for observers in both the northern and southern hemispheres are available for the following times this month. Subtract one hour from your local time if daylight savings time is in effect. (Note: These times are approximate.)
Northern Hemisphere : 45° N
- 1730 hours (1830 hours daylight savings)
- 1930 hours (2030 hours daylight savings)
- 2130 hours (2230 hours daylight savings)
- 2330 hours (0030 hours daylight savings)
- 0130 hours (0230 hours daylight savings)
- 0330 hours (0430 hours daylight savings)
- 0530 hours (0630 hours daylight savings)
Southern Hemisphere : 30° S
- 1730 hours (1830 hours daylight savings)
- 1930 hours (2030 hours daylight savings)
- 2130 hours (2230 hours daylight savings)
- 2330 hours (0030 hours daylight savings)
- 0130 hours (0230 hours daylight savings)
- 0330 hours (0430 hours daylight savings)
- 0530 hours (0630 hours daylight savings)
For More Information...
- Consult our online glossary for non-technical explanations of many of the astronomical terms used in these pages.
- Blue moons, eclipses, the dates of Easter and much more can be found at the Interactive Astronomy Pages.
- For more information about the objects and events described in SkyEye, visit these astronomy-related sites.
Credits
Much of this information can be found in this month's issue of your favourite amateur astronomy magazine available in your local bookshop. Another excellent source is the current edition of the Astronomical Calendar by Guy Ottewell and published by the Universal Workshop at Furman University.
The image of the Sun in the SkyEye banner is courtesy of the SOHO/EIT consortium. SOHO is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA. Used with permission.
Copyright © 1995-2004 by David Harper and L.M. Stockman
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Obliquity
Last modified on 29 February 2004
https://www.obliquity.com/skyeye/archive/2004/mar2004.html