MARCH
OBSERVING HIGHLIGHTS
EARTH SATELLITES:
Moon --- New Moon occurs March 7 at 17:14UT (12:14 p.m. EST)
First Quarter Moon occurs March 14 at 10:46 UT (6:46 a.m. EDT)
Full Moon occurs March 21 at 18:40 UT (2:40 p.m. EDT)
Last Quarter Moon occurs March 29 at 21:47 UT (5:47 p.m. EDT)
Artificial Satellites --- Reference the following web site for information on observing
artificial satellites:
http:www.calsky.com/cs.cgi
PLANETS:
Mercury and Venus are
barely visible during dawn in the east-southeast.
Mars at +0.2 magnitude will be high in the night sky in the south. On March 8-12, Mars can be seen in binoculars within 2 degrees north of the star cluster M35 in the constellation Gemini. On March 14-15 at midnight EDT Mars is 1 degree south of the first quarter Moon.
Jupiter will be at about -2.0 magnitude several hours before sunrise and low in the southeast.
Saturn in the constellation Leo will go from +0.2 magnitude on March 1 to +0.4 magnitude on March 31. It will be visible all night long in March.
Neptune, Uranus and Pluto will be unobservable.
DEEP SKY:
The constellations Orion and Taurus will dominate the
southern night sky. Following the stars in Orion’s belt downward finds Sirius
the Dog Star, the sky’s brightest star. Sirius, in the constellation Canis
Major, reaches its maximum height above the horizon this month. Ursa Major dominates the northern sky while
Arcturus in the constellation Bootes and the constellations Hercules and Leo
continue their display.
Nebula
The Ghost of Jupiter (NGC 3242) is a planetary nebula in the constellation Hydra. Through a low power telescope this nebula is similar in size and appearance to the planet Jupiter. It can be found near the middle of the constellation. This nebula is best seen in a telescope 6 inches (150 mm) or greater in diameter. NGC 3242 has an apparent magnitude of 8.6 with a size of 16 light-years and is 2600 light-years distant.
The Great Orion Nebula (M42) a.k.a. NGC 1976 is a diffuse nebula in the constellation Orion visible to the naked eye. Although you can see M42 moderately well in binoculars, it is more appreciated when viewed with a 6 to 8 inch (150 – 200 mm) telescope. It has a an apparent magnitude of 4 with a size of 28 light years and a distance of 1,600 light-years. The brightest stars in the nebula are the famous four Trapezium stars. The Horse Head Nebula can be observed in Orion with a telescope, also.
The Crab Nebula (M1) a.k.a. NGC 1952 in Taurus can be observed with binoculars but any sort of detail in the Crab requires a good 10-inch (250 mm) instrument. The Crab nebula has an apparent magnitude of 8.2 and is 6300 light-years distant.
Clusters
M37 a.k.a. NGC 2099 is an open cluster in the constellation Auriga with nearby M36 and M38. To find M37, point your binoculars midway between the stars Theta and Beta Auriga, then scan a couple of degrees toward Gemini. They will reveal a misty patch, while a telescope will resolve the many stars. M37 has an apparent magnitude of 5.6 and a distance of 4,100 light years.
Pleiades (M45) a.k.a. the Seven Sisters can be seen with the naked eye. This open cluster is in the constellation Taurus. It has an apparent magnitude of 1.2 with a size of 13 light-years and a distance of 400 light-years.
Beehive Cluster (M44) a.k.a. Praesepe NGC 2632 is an open cluster in the constellation Cancer. This naked eye object is a third magnitude grouping of about 200 stars spread over a patch of the sky equivalent in size of nine full moons. Either binoculars or a low power telescope with a wide field are the best tools for viewing this object. Its actual size is 15 light-years and is 580 light-years distant.
Coma Star Cluster (Melotte 111) is a naked eye object in the constellation Coma Berenices. It is a small but nearby star cluster in our galaxy containing about 40 stars (magnitude 5 to 10). It has a distance of 288 light-years.
Galaxies
M95 a.k.a. NGC 3351 is a faint barred spiral galaxy in the constellation Leo. It is a member of the Leo I Galaxy Group which includes M96, M105 and several fainter NGC galaxies. It has an apparent magnitude of 9.7 with a distance of 36 million light-years. A telescope larger than 10” (250 mm) is required to begin to distinquish the galaxy’s spiral structure.
M65 a.k.a. NGC 3263 is a spiral galaxy of the class Sa in the constellation Leo. This galaxy can be seen with binoculars but a low power telescope provides the best view of M65 and the smaller M66, to form a pair. M65 has an apparent magnitude of 9.3 with a size of 82,000 light-years. It is 35 million light-years distant.
Special Notes: (1) Day-light saving time begins at 2:00 a.m. on March 9, 2008.
(2) Spring equinox occurs on March 20 at 1:48 a.m. EDT.
Ref2/26/08
