Mars To Dominate The Sky In March

March Skies
By Jon Spargo
For the Mountain Mail

Venus begins its steady climb into the early evening sky. By the end of the month it will be about 12 degrees above the western horizon one half hour after sunset. Shining at magnitude -3.9 all month we can welcome the dazzling planet back to the night sky.
Mars continues to dominate the evening sky although it will fade slightly in magnitude to +0.1 by the end of the month as the Earth has passed by it and is now increasing the distance to Mars. Through a small telescope its disk will still appear to be about 10 arc seconds wide, which will allow decent views of some surface features and the polar ice cap.
Saturn is placed for prime time viewing during the month rising just after sunset on the first. It will reach opposition on the 21st thereby being visible all night long. Shining at magnitude +0.5 it will easily rival the nearby bright stars Arcturus and Spica. Ring watchers should concentrate on the early part of the month when the rings are inclined at and angle of 4 degrees. By the end of the month they will close slightly to 3 degrees.
Mercury will be briefly visible on the 31st and will be seen about 3.5 degrees lower and to the right of Venus. Shining at magnitude -0.9, Mercury will get even closer to Venus in April.
The Moon will be last quarter on the 7th, new on the 15th, 1st quarter on the 23rd and full on the 29th. This month the Moon can be used to help you locate a couple of constellations as well as some planets. From March 6 through 10, about one hour before sunrise, the waning Moon moves from the head of Scorpius passing the entire constellation and also the constellation Sagittarius (Teapot) on successive mornings.
30 minutes after sunset on the 16th and 17th the crescent Moon will help you find the planet Venus about 5 degrees above the western horizon.
Spring begins on the 20th at 11:32 a.m. MDT as we reach the Vernal Equinox. This is a special time of the year for small telescope owners. With some hard work it is possible to view all 109 Messier objects in a single night’s observing from dusk to dawn. Happy hunting!

Mars To Dominate The Sky In March