There’s a lot of stuff to look forward to in March when it comes to the sky.
Crescent Venus
The first half of the month is a fantastic time to catch a view of crescent Venus. Much like the moon, Venus has phases. Since it lies between us and the sun, it goes through a full phase change every Earth orbit. Currently, it appears similar to the middle right of the image below. The best way to see this phenomenon is with a pair of strong binoculars or a small telescope. It will be dropping rapidly towards the horizon each evening as it moves behind the sun from our vantage point but it will remain extremely bright in the evening sky through the first 10 days of the month. It will then disappear and reappear in the morning sky by the end of the month. It will actually briefly be visible in both the morning AND evening sky from March 18-21, although it will be difficult to pick out against the bright background.
Mercury March 7-9
The best chance to catch the “planetary parade” will come from March 7-9 when Mercury reaches its highest point in the sky. It will only be about 10 degrees above the horizon but visible below Venus. This will be the best chance to see Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter with the naked eye. Looking from west to east at sunset you will find Venus and Mercury near the horizon with Mars and Jupiter high up/overhead. Uranus and Neptune are also in the night sky but only visible through small telescopes. Mercury will be the same height above the horizon as Venus on March 13, so perhaps use Venus as a guide of where to look.
Lunar Eclipse March 13-14
The biggest event of the month will no doubt be the total lunar eclipse of March 13-14. This will be the first total lunar eclipse since May 15/16 of 2022, almost 3 full years ago. The eclipse will be visible from start to finish, the last time this will happen until January 2047 (this won’t be the last total visible until then, just the last where we can see the entire eclipse). The partial eclipse begins locally at 1:09AM with totality lasting from 2:26AM-3:31AM. The partial eclipse will then end at 4:47AM. Look for more information on this when we get closer!
Lunar and planet meetings
The moon will join a pair of planets in the sky early this month. March 1st the crescent moon will be near Venus making for a beautiful pairing. March 5th you can find it near Jupiter, and March 9th hanging near Mars.
Jupiter and Mars will both be high in the sky all month. Saturn is technically in the night sky but will locate very low in the horizon for most of the month and be hidden in the glare of the sun.
A partial solar eclipse will take place at the end of the month and will be visible from the Northeast US, but won’t be visible here in Georgia.
Be sure to take advantage of the gradually warming weather for some sky gazing!
