Introduction
February ended with a couple of major snowstorms over Utah. The clouds, of course, prohibit any sort of stargazing. A few lucky observers may have been able to spot the Moon, planets, or brighter stars through the clouds, however. During early February, I was able to go to one of my favorite dark sky locations and capture a few images of the Zodiacal Light and Comet ZTF. I will share the best images in a future post.
Typically, March brings a few snowstorms and rain to Utah. The current weather forecast shows that this trend will continue. Astronomically speaking, March will bring a conjunction between the two brightest planets in our solar system, Jupiter and Venus, the chance to view the Zodiacal Light, and the Vernal Equinox. This post will also highlight the Messier objects in Hydra.
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| Mercury |
At the start of the month, Mercury will be located in the morning sky, rising shortly before the Sun. Mercury and Saturn will meet in the morning sky on the 2nd, with Mercury outshining the more distant Saturn. Unfortunately for Utahns, this conjunction won't be able to be seen due to our northern latitude and the eastern mountains. Mercury will fall closer to the Sun and reach superior conjunction on the 17th. After Mercury's conjunction with the Sun, it will return to the evening sky. On the 27th of March, a conjunction between Mercury and Jupiter will occur. At this time, the pair of planets can be found less than 2° apart.
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| Venus |
Venus and Jupiter have been approaching each other throughout February. On March 1st, the pair will finally meet in the evening sky. An observer using a simple pair of binoculars should be able to see both of the planets as well as the Galilean Moons of Jupiter in a single field of view. Following this early month conjunction, this pair of bright planets will drift apart as Venus pulls away from the Sun and Jupiter falls ever closer. A two-day-old Moon can be found below Venus on the 23rd with a three-day-old Moon found just above our sister planet the following evening.
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| Mars |
Mars will be found in Taurus the Bull for most of March, shining brightly near Aldebaran, the red eye of the Bull. The major surface features of Mars can still be seen on a clear and steady night. The first part of the month will offer observers the chance to view Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system. When I post my mid-month check-in, Valles Marineris, the "Grand Canyon" on Mars will be visible. By the end of March, Mars will pass into Gemini and be found close to the open star cluster, M35, which was highlighted in my December Night Sky Report. A pair of binoculars will reveal this pair on the 29th where they can be found about 1° apart. For observers with a telescope, use a low-power eyepiece to reveal a star-studded background and the bright reddish-orange Mars in a single field of view. The Moon can be found near Mars on the 28th.
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| Jupiter |
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| Saturn |
Jupiter will find itself close to Venus on the first night in March. After this conjunction, Venus will appear to rise higher in the western sky, away from the Sun, while Jupiter sinks closer to the horizon, falling closer to the Sun. This means the best chance for observers to view Jupiter will come earlier in the month, while Jupiter remains somewhat high above the horizon. On the evening of the Venus and Jupiter conjunction, observers can use a pair of binoculars or a telescope to view both planets together. Either instrument will offer views of the Galilean Moons as well as the 85% lit disk of Venus. The one-day-old Moon will join Jupiter in the evening sky on the 22nd, but will likely be too slim to notice.
Saturn recently crossed over to a planet best viewed in the morning hours before sunrise. The best chance for viewing Saturn will come at the end of the month when it rises above the Utah mountains about an hour before the Sun.
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| Neptune |
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| Uranus |
The two outermost planets can be viewed through a pair of binoculars but will look their best through a telescope. Uranus can be found in the constellation of Cetus in the western sky during March. Throughout the month, Venus is climbing higher in the sky and will meet with Uranus on the 30th. Six days prior to this conjunction, a thin, crescent, 14% lit Moon can be found less than 2° to the upper right of Uranus.
Neptune will reach conjunction with the Sun on the 15th and will not be visible during March.
The Zodiacal Light
March continues the trend set in February and will not offer any major meteor showers. This month will offer another chance of viewing the Zodiacal Light, however. To view the Zodiacal Light, an observer will need to travel away from all sources of light pollution and have a clear view of the western horizon. This light is dim and is often mistaken as the glow from the Sun at dusk. In fact, this light is also referred to as the "false dusk" for this reason. The Zodiacal Light will start at the western horizon and flow upwards through Aries and Taurus. It will appear as a cone of light with the largest part on the horizon and the tip upwards, toward Taurus. I like to think of it as an ice cream cone that has been dropped on the ground.
Spot Me....🕵️
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| The sky as an observer faces south-southeast. |
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| The sky as an observer faces south-southeast with constellation lines and labels and the bright stars labeled. |
The first Messier object is M48 (aka NGC 2548) an open star cluster. This object can be found near the head of Hydra the water snake, but closer to the constellation Monoceros. This open cluster will look similar to M44, the Beehive Cluster in Cancer that was highlighted in my December 2022 Night Sky Report. The image below shows the location of M48.
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| Location of M48 in Hydra. |
The next target is M68 (aka NGC 4590), a globular star cluster. This object can be located above the tail of Hydra. See the image below for the location of M68.
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| Location of M68 in Hyrda. |
The final target in Hydra, M83 (aka Southern Pinwheel Galaxy, NGC 5236) is a spiral galaxy. This galaxy can be located off of the tip of the tail of Hydra. See the image below for the location of M83.
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| Location of M83 in Hydra. |
M68 and M83 might best be viewed later in the year when Hydra is higher in the sky, but for those observers that are looking for something new and want to practice locating these Messier objects, March offers a great opportunity. The images below show the location of the three objects in Hydra.
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| Location of the Messier objects which can be found in Hyrda. |
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| Location of the Messier objects which can be found in Hydra with constellation lines and labels. |
The images in the "Spot Me..." section are provided by Stellarium, a free planetarium software. Here is an updated file of the Messier Catalog. Please check back around the 15th of March for a new post highlighting the Messier objects that can be found in Canes Venatici!
Monthly Breakdown
March 01: Venus and Jupiter conjunction
March 07: Full Moon 🌕
March 14: Last Quarter Moon🌗
March 15: Neptune and Sun conjunction
March 17: Mercury reaches superior conjunction
March 19: Moon passes within 4° of Saturn
March 20: Vernal equinox
March 21: New Moon 🌑
March 22: Moon passes within 1° of Jupiter
March 23: Moon passes within 1° of Venus
March 24: Moon passes within 2° of Uranus
March 28: First Quarter Moon 🌓
March 28: Moon passes within 2° of Mars
March 28: Mercury and Jupiter conjunction
March 31: Venus and Uranus conjunction
Remember to follow me on Instagram @CosmicLure01 to receive notifications for new posts. You may also follow me on Twitter @CosmicLure.
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| Now get outside and look up! |
Planet images were taken by NASA.
Andrew vs. the Cosmos was taken by Jeff Greenland.
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