Woking Planetarium

Read our March sky notes to find out what’s in the night sky this month!

Map

Constellations

These constellations are well placed in the evening this month, but many more can be seen. Check the star map for more.

Orion can be seen in the early evening sky, low in the south western sky. It appears lower later on in the month, so best views will be early in the month. Orion will soon disappear from the sky for the summer.

Boötes rises in the north eastern sky and moves towards the south during the night. It disappears in the west at dawn, so best views will be in the early morning when it is highest in the sky.

Leo appears in the south eastern sky at sunset and moves across the south to set in the west around dawn. It is visible for most of the night and best views will be around midnight when it is highest in the sky.

Planets

Mercury is too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Venus is too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Mars is too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Jupiter appears low in the south western sky at sunset. It sets after a couple of hours and appears lower as the month goes on. Best views will be earlier in the month. Jupiter will be in conjunction with the Moon on the 14^th.

Saturn is too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Uranus is too faint to be seen with the naked eye. It is very close to Jupiter this month and follows the same path in the sky, appearing in the south west before setting a couple of hours later.

Neptune is too faint to be seen with the naked eye. It is too close to the Sun to be seen this month.

Moon

New Moon: 10^th

First Quarter: 17^th

Full Moon: 25^th

Last Quarter: 1^st

The Moon is at perigee, its closest point to the Earth, on the 10^th, and apogee, its furthest point from the Earth on the 23^rd. This effect is not visually apparent.

The Moon is at perihelion, its closest point to the Sun, on the 8^th, and aphelion, its furthest point from the Sun on the 28^th. This effect is not visually apparent.

The Moon makes a close approach with the Pleiades (M45) on the 15^th. In the constellation of Taurus, they can be seen between 18:56 and 00:35 GMT.

Points of Interest

Asteroid 3 Juno is at opposition on the 3^rd. It lies in the constellation of Leo and is visible between 20:13 and 04:10 GMT. Best views will be around midnight when it reaches its highest point in the sky.

Asteroid 23 Thalia is at opposition on the 12^th. In the constellation of Leo, it is visible between 00:39 and 05:02 GMT. Best views will be around midnight when it is highest in the sky.

The March Equinox is on the 20^th. This is the day where the hours of daylight and darkness are equal.

136472 Makemake is at opposition on the 30^th. It lies in the constellation of Coma Berenices and is visible for most of the night. Best views will be around midnight when it was highest in the sky.

Visit Spot the Station to find out when the ISS will be visible from your location.

Last updated: 15^th February.