Mars – S·P·A·C·E • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts

JUPITER IS LOST AS IT MOVES TO THE MORNING….

by William J. Bechaver

This weekend, Jupiter is in the process of passing around the far side of the Sun. On Saturday 18 May, Jupiter will be left behind in its slower orbit, as Earth moves away from it. It will lie directly on the opposite side of its orbit, behind the Sun when viewed from Earth.

In fact, Jupiter will not be seen in a dark sky this weekend. Jupiter sets before the sunset and rises after the sunrise. We can not view Jupiter while it is in conjunction with the Sun, while it is at its most distant position from Earth.

From this point forward, Earth will continue to move closer to Jupiter now, as it will reappear in the morning sky, and we will slowly gain on the distant planet in its slower orbit.

Now, all the visible planets are in the morning sky. Jupiter and Venus, the brightest of the planets viewed from Earth, are both lost to the glare of the Sun.

On the morning of Thursday 23 May, Venus rises only 24 seconds before Jupiter in the morning sky, lost in the glare of the Sun, which rises only seven minutes after the planets. They appear too near the Sun to be viewed during their closest passage.

The following morning, Jupiter will lie above Venus. It will continue its climb higher into the morning sky, as Venus continues to descend each day.

So, while the brightest planets are too low to be viewed, the readily visible planets are higher in the sky during the early morning hours.

Saturn and Mars rise well before sunrise, in a dark sky in the east. This week provides the last opportunity to see Mercury in the morning sky, as it begins its descent toward the Sun. It rises about an hour before the Sun this week, just as the sky is beginning to lighten.

By next week, it will appear closer to the Sun, and more distant from Earth. This week it is at its greatest separation from the Sun, at nearer Earth. It shines brighter than Saturn and Mars right now. You will only need a clear and low eastern horizon to see it, low before sunrise. A pair of binoculars will come in handy to separate the planet from the bright sky surrounding it. But once you find it, you can’t miss it!

With all the planets appearing in the morning sky, now, we have only the stars and constellations to view in the evenings.

Orion, the most notable of winter constellations, has now moved into the west, and is distinctly visible in the twilight after sunset.

On Thursday 23 May, the Moon will be full, rising in the east just before sunset. Look for the bright star Antares, the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius, just to the upper right of the Moon. It will lie less than a half of one degree from the Moon at its closest, about an hour after the pair rises in the east.

Though the Moon will pass very near Antares, it will not pass in front of the star, except for viewers in the south eastern part of the United States. But for us, here, the pairing on Thursday night will be very close!

So, our planetary views are limited to the dimmer of the planets and only early in the morning hours. For those of us who are night viewers, we must be content with views of the Moon, sometimes pairing with the brightest stars in the sky.

With the planets rising higher and shining brighter in the morning, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

Thanks for the positive feedback about our featured columns, and your continued interest in astronomy. If you have any questions or article requests, contact us at spacescape@rocketmail.com, or follow us on Twitter @ColoSpacEScapE for updates and additional viewing opportunities.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 8:02 p.m.
6 minutes later than last week
94.042 million miles from Earth
135,486 miles further than last week
2.638 million miles further than its nearest in January

Saturn Rise = 2:43 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
3 hours 3 minutes before the Sun
927.774 million miles from Earth
10,027,937 miles nearer than last week
67.739 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Moon Set = 3:37 a.m.
22 minutes later than yesterday
7 hours 35 minutes after the Sun
Waxing Gibbous 81.63% Illuminated
250,837 miles from Earth
556 miles nearer than yesterday
10,925 miles further than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Mars Rise = 3:45 a.m.
15 minutes earlier than last week
2 hours 1 minute before the Sun
177.256 million miles from Earth
2,460,589 miles nearer than last week
59.727 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Mercury Rise = 4:47 a.m.
5 minutes earlier than last week
59 minutes before the Sun
91.813 million miles from Earth
10,950,800 miles further than last week
38.231 million miles further than its nearest in April

Venus Rise = 5:36 a.m.
2 minutes earlier than last week
10 minutes before the Sun
160.568 million miles from Earth
731,170 miles further than last week
133.730 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 5:46 a.m.
5 minutes earlier than last week
94.049 million miles from Earth
7,426 miles further than last evening
134,489 miles further than last week
2,645,427 miles further than its nearest in January

Full Moon occurs on Thursday, May 23rd, at 7:53 a.m.

We’ve Gained 11 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 57 minutes since last month, and 4 hours 39 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 2.235 million miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 41 minutes. This is the duration between Sun Set in the evening and Saturn Rise in the early morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

*The planets and their relative positions in the solar system for this weekend. Planet sizes and distances are obviously not to scale.*

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.4807 • 236 •

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NO BRIGHT PLANETS FOR US….

by William J. Bechaver

As we know from experience, Venus and Jupiter are the two brightest planets in the sky.

Venus is the largest near planet to Earth. It is nearly the size of Earth, and covered in a thick layer of reflective clouds. Traditionally, no matter how distant Venus is from us, it is by far the brightest planet in the sky.

Mars is a tiny, rocky world, and even at its closest, it can not compete with the brightness of Venus.

Jupiter is the largest planet it the solar system. So even at its most distant, is easily outshines the nearest planets besides Venus.

But right now, we’re having some difficulty viewing either of the brightest planets in the sky.

Venus is on its way around the far side of the Sun, moving away from Earth in its shorter, more rapid orbit. It has sunk so low in the morning sky, it rises a mere thirteen minutes before the Sun. In the bright dawn sky preceeding sunrise, even brilliant Venus is now lost in the glare.

Jupiter, on the other hand, is falling further behind Earth. We are in a shorter orbit, moving around the Sun far more quickly than distant Jupiter. As it drops into the distance, it is moving ever lower in the evening sky.

Jupiter sets in the west only twenty one minutes after the Sun, and it is getting substantially lower every evening. It is currently lost in the sunset glare as it prepares to pass around the far side of the Sun and into the morning sky.

So, what does that leave us with, with the two brightest planets out of contention for being viewed, at the same time.

We have Saturn rising first in the morning sky. It is huge, but very distant. At nearly twice the distance of Jupiter, it is bright in the morning sky, but nothing compared to Jupiter when viewed from Earth.

Mars rises next, and is only slightly brighter than Saturn. It is much nearer, but being a small and rocky world, it doesn’t reflect nearly as much sunlight as Venus or Jupiter.

So, what we’re left with is tiny Mercury. Mercury is tiny also. The smallest of all, it is only slightly larger than our own Moon. But right now, it shines at almost one complete magnitude brighter than Mars and Saturn.

So, at this unique time for planetary viewing, miniscule Mercury is the brightest planet in the sky!

What’s more, no planets are now visible in the night sky. In fact, we have to wait more than eight hours after sunset before the first planet makes an appearance, with the rise of Saturn in the morning sky.

So, with nary a planet available for observation during the night, let us take this opportunity to find some of the brightest stars, in some of the notable constellations in our night sky.

On Sunday 12 May at sunset, look high in the west for the crescent Moon. Just to the right of the crescent Moon is Pollux, the head of one of the twins of Gemini. Further to the right of the pair is Castor, the head of the other twin. They stand upright, high above the western horizon at sunset. The Moon will traverse westward with the twins, and set just after midnight, early Monday morning.

On Wednesday 15 May, go out anytime after sunset and find the Quarter Moon high in the southern sky. To the lower right of the Moon, you’ll find the bright star Regulus, the brightest start in the forepaw of the zodiacal constellation Leo, the lion. It will travel with Leo to the west, setting a couple of hours after midnight, just in preparation for the rise of Saturn in the east about an hour later.

Though Saturn and Mars are both distant from Earth, they are both 57 million miles nearer to Earth than they were at their furthest. Saturn remains much further away than Mars, but at their difference of size and distance, they both shine nearly equally bright in our morning sky.

For our longtime and faithful readers, in months past, we have been keeping an eye on the Moon when it passes the Pleiades star cluster. Back in February, the Quarter Moon was near the Pleiades in the middle of the month. This month, the star cluster is so low to the western horizon, it can not be observed any longer. The Moon encountered the Pleiades a full week before the first quarter phase, just after the Moon was new. For each quarter of the year, the Pleiades move one quarter of the lunar cycle. So, it will be near the Third Quarter Moon in August, the Full Moon in November, and back to the First Quarter by next February. It will have swung around through the entire lunar cycle through the course of one year.

With Mercury being the brightest planet in the sky, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:56 p.m.
6 minutes later than last week
93.906 million miles from Earth
152,680 miles further than last week
2.502 million miles further than its nearest in January

Jupiter Set = 8:17 p.m.
19 minutes earlier than last week
21 minutes after the Sun
559.581 million miles from Earth
1,618,490 miles further than last week
189.257 million miles further than its nearest in November

Moon Set = 12:15 a.m.
54 minutes later than yesterday
4 hour 19 minutes after the Sun
Waxing Crescent 18.55% Illuminated
239,912 miles from Earth
3,498 miles further than yesterday
14,181 miles further than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Saturn Rise = 3:09 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
2 hours 42 minutes before the Sun
937.801 million miles from Earth
9,527,176 miles nearer than last week
57.711 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Mars Rise = 4:00 a.m.
14 minutes earlier than last week
1 hour 51 minutes before the Sun
179.717 million miles from Earth
2,453,062 miles nearer than last week
57.267 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Mercury Rise = 4:52 a.m.
9 minutes earlier than last week
59 minutes before the Sun
80.863 million miles from Earth
10,131,275 miles further than last week
27.280 million miles further than its nearest in April

Venus Rise = 5:38 a.m.
3 minutes earlier than last week
13 minutes before the Sun
159.837 million miles from Earth
974,653 miles further than last week
132.999 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 5:51 a.m.
7 minutes earlier than last week
93.915 million miles from Earth
8,423 miles further than last evening
151,368 miles further than last week
2,510,938 miles further than its nearest in January

First Quarter Moon occurs on Wednesday, May 15th, at 5:48 a.m.

We’ve Gained 13 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 1 hour 2 minutes since last month, and 4 hours 28 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 13 million miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 52 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set in the evening and Saturn Rise in the early morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.4615 • 235 •

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PLANET PAIRINGS AND A METEOR SHOWER….

by William J. Bechaver

This week is a week for planets pairing with the Moon, as all the planets are lined up neatly in the morning sky, and the Moon is prepared to pass through for a visit.

On the morning of Friday 3 May, go out well before sunrise and look to the east. There you will find the crescent Moon hanging low in the sky. To the lower left of the Moon you will find Saturn. This is our first opportunity to find Saturn easily in a dark sky before the dawn’s early light begins to lighten the horizon.

Go out the following morning, and you will find that the planet locations have not been altered very much, but the position of the Moon will have changed.

On Saturday 4 May, the finer crescent Moon will now be located between Saturn, above to the right of the Moon, and Mars, below to the left of it. The planets are almost evenly spaced in the morning sky right now, and the Moon will nearly be equally placed between them.

On the late night of May 4th, and into the early morning of Sunday 5 May, the Eta Aquariid Meteor Shower will be reaching its period of maximum activity.

The later you go outside to look, the better will your chances be of seeing a quick Aquariid as it streaks across the sky.

The Eta Aquariid shower is usually thought of as primarily a southern meteor shower. And, indeed, the further you are south, the better the chances of seeing many meteors from this shower. The point in the sky from which the meteors seem to radiate is low in the south eastern sky just before the dawn begins to grow in the east.

But this year, the Moon is mostly out of the picture, so our chances for good views from our location is greatly improved. In fact, this will be our best spring meteor shower this year, as the Lyrids in April were totally compromised by the full Moon in the sky for the entire night of peak activity.

So, with this being our best chance to see meteors as the evenings are warming, going out on the early morning of May 5th will be well worth the effort.

If you begin watching shortly after midnight, look high overhead in the sky, away from any interfering lights. Many meteors you will see this early will be skimming across the upper atmosphere, leaving long streaks of ionized gasses and particles glowing seconds after the parent meteor is gone.

Later in the morning, as you look to the east, toward Aquarius, toward the radiant, the point in the sky from which the meteors appear to originate, the meteors you will see will be shorter though brighter.

A meteor shower occurs when a passing comet leaves icy particles of debris in its wake. These particles continue to orbit the Sun after the comet passes through the inner solar system.

When the orbit of Earth carries our planet through the field of particles left behind, those bits of ice burn up as they enter our upper atmosphere, and we observe those streaks of flame as meteors.

The comet responsible for the Eta Aquariid meteors is the most famous of all, Halley’s Comet.

Halley’s Comet last passed through our inner solar system back in 1986. It has a 76 year orbital period, as it travels around the Sun in a very elliptical orbit. Since its last encounter with the Sun, it has been traveling away, into the depths of the solar system. It was at its furthest position from the Sun on December 9th, 2023, at more than 3.3 billion miles away, out beyond the orbit of Neptune. Which means, from that point forward, Halley’s began its inward voyage toward Earth and the Sun. The journey is a long one. The next time we will see Halley’s Comet in our sky will be in 2061, when its inward voyage is nearly complete!

If you watch meteors on the dark morning of Sunday 5 May, you may want to keep watching until just before sunrise.

In the east, the fine crescent Moon will now be located low in the sky, with Mars now to the upper right. As the Moon makes its way higher into the lightening sky, you will be able to find tiny Mercury lower to the left of the Moon, along the light horizon. You will need a low and clear horizon to find the Moon, and to have any hope of locating Mercury a little lower than the Moon.

The Aquariid Meteors actually peak during the daylight hours of May 5th. But the peak period for this shower is very long, since the trail of particles left behind by Halley’s Comet is so wide, that we will have a second opportunity to watch the meteor shower the following morning.

On the morning of Monday 6 May, go out much as the night before. I will start watching just after midnight. The meteors strike the atmosphere at nearly 150,000 miles an hour, and are very bright. Again, the higher in the sky you look, the longer the streaks from the meteors will be. But, low to the east before sunrise, though with shorter trails, the opportunities will increase, as more meteors will strike in a more concentrated area of the sky.

Again, on the morning of May 6th, if you wait until moonrise, just before the Sun, you will find the very fine crescent Moon low on a clear horizon, with Mercury just to the right of the Moon. This may indeed be our best opportunity to find Mercury in the morning sky, with the ever sinking and diminishing Moon showing the way.

On Thursday 9 May, Mercury will reach its highest point in our morning sky, rising more than an hour before the Sun. Though the sky won’t be completely dark as Mercury rises, it will be our best chance for a clear view, as Mercury comes over the horizon in a relatively dark sky.

Mercury shines brighter than Mars and Saturn right now. The only thing that prevents a good view is the light present in the sky before sunrise. So, the best chance to find tiny, bright, Mercury is on Thursday morning, as it rises well in advance of the Sun. The earlier you look, the better are your chances of finding it before the brightness of the sky makes it all the more difficult.

So, with a meteor shower, and planets pairing, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:50 p.m.
7 minutes later than last week
93.753 million miles from Earth
168,535 miles further than last week
2.349 million miles further than its nearest in January

Jupiter Set = 8:36 p.m.
20 minutes earlier than last week
46 minutes after the Sun
557.963 million miles from Earth
2,523,265 miles further than last week
187.639 million miles further than its nearest in November

Saturn Rise = 3:35 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
2 hours 23 minutes before the Sun
947.329 million miles from Earth
8,910,663 miles nearer than last week
48.184 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Mars Rise = 4:14 a.m.
14 minutes earlier than last week
1 hour 44 minutes before the Sun
182.170 million miles from Earth
2,446,245 miles nearer than last week
54.814 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Moon Rise = 4:27 a.m.
27 minutes later than yesterday
1 hour 31 minutes before the Sun
225,731 miles from Earth
756 miles nearer than yesterday
13,540 miles nearer than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Mercury Rise = 5:01 a.m.
15 minutes earlier than last week
57 minutes before the Sun
70.731 million miles from Earth
8,738,106 miles further than last week
17.148 million miles further than its nearest in April

Venus Rise = 5:41 a.m.
5 minutes earlier than last week
17 minutes before the Sun
158.862 million miles from Earth
1,210,925 miles further than last week
132.024 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 5:58 a.m.
8 minutes earlier than last week
93.763 million miles from Earth
9,735 miles further than last evening
167,600 miles further than last week
2,359,570 miles further than its nearest in January

New Moon occurs on Tuesday, May 7th, at 9:21 p.m.

We’ve Gained 14 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 1 hour 5 minutes since last month, and 4 hours 15 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 23,031,929 miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 59 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set in the evening and Saturn Rise in the early morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.4423 • 234 •

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MORNING PLANETS BEGIN TO SHINE….

by William J. Bechaver

The distant planets are beginning to emerge from the morning twilight, to shine brighter in our skies before dawn.

Saturn has now risen above the glare of the Sun, to enter the sky just after four in the morning. This means that you can find Saturn above the eastern horizon while the sky appears completely dark.

Mars is just behind Saturn, rising about a half an hour later. It appears lower to the left of Saturn, with the two a little more than ten degrees apart. The sky is already beginning to lighten slightly when Mars makes its appearance, but it shines a little brighter than Saturn, and both are becoming very easy to see as we draw nearer, and they appear further from the Sun.

Below Mars, at about the same distance, to the lower left, is tiny Mercury. It remains low to the horizon. Though Mercury now shines brighter than Saturn and Mars, it is difficult to find without binoculars. The sky surrounding Mercury is bright, as Mercury appears so low along the horizon before sunrise. Mercury rises less than an hour before the Sun, and appears so low, you only have a chance to find it using binoculars right now.

Next week, the Moon will parade between the planets, making locating them in the morning sky an easy task.

By the end of the week, the fine crescent Moon enters the field. Go out early on the morning of Friday 3 May, and you will find the Moon off to the right of a rising Saturn.

On Friday, the Moon will rise at about three-thirty in the morning. Saturn will enter the sky above the horizon about a dozen minutes later, appearing to the left of the beautiful crescent Moon. This will set the stage for finding the planets the following week.

More than thirty minutes after Saturn, Mars will rise, to the lower left of Saturn. If you look along that same line, at about the same distance, about an hour later, you will find Mercury low to the horizon, with the use of a good pair of binoculars. All three planets are lined up, with about the same distance separating the three.

But wait! There’s an extra planet in our morning sky that is often overlooked. It is so distant, it requires a good pair of binoculars, a clear and steady eastern sky, and a low horizon.

On the morning of Sunday 28 April, from our point of view, Mars will be passing very near the very distant, and dim planet Neptune, the furthest planet from the Sun in our solar system.

The two will appear so very near each other, less than a tenth of a degree will separate them. So, looking for Neptune will be worth the effort. Find Mars in the early morning sky, before the sky begins to lighten very much. Finding Mars as early as possible is imperative, to assure the surrounding sky is dark. Once you find Mars low above the eastern horizon, look through binoculars to try to find the faintest of dots to the left of the red planet. If you see anything in the same field of view with Mars, it is the planet Neptune.

They only appear near each other from our point of view on Earth. Mars is much nearer to Earth, a tiny, rocky world. Neptune is a gigantic ice giant planet, more than seven times the size of Mars. But Neptune is 2.851 billion miles away, more than fifteen times the distance of Mars. Neptune is nearly three times more distant than Saturn, the furthest planet we can observe without visual aid. The two planets only appear close together, for more than two billion miles of space separates Neptune from Mars.

Jupiter is ever sinking lower in our evening sky. The twilight glow can still be seen when Jupiter sets, now just an hour after the Sun. Soon Jupiter will pass around the far side of the Sun, at its furthest distance from Earth. Get outside during evening twilight to find the gem of Jupiter shining low in our western sky.

With the morning planets now rising to prominence, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:43 p.m.
6 minutes later than last week
93.585 million miles from Earth
174,400 miles further than last week
2.181 million miles further than its nearest in January

Jupiter Set = 8:56 p.m.
19 minutes earlier than last week
1 hour 13 minutes after the Sun
555.440 million miles from Earth
3,407,524 miles further than last week
185.115 million miles further than its nearest in November

Moon Rise = 11:59 p.m.
63 minutes later than yesterday
6 hours 7 minutes before the Sun
239,271 miles from Earth
2,273 miles nearer than yesterday
12,493 miles nearer than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Saturn Rise = 4:01 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
2 hours 5 minutes before the Sun
956.239 million miles from Earth
8,198,662 miles nearer than last week
39.273 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Mars Rise = 4:28 a.m.
15 minutes earlier than last week
1 hour 38 minutes before the Sun
184.616 million miles from Earth
2,450,200 miles nearer than last week
52.367 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Mercury Rise = 5:16 a.m.
21 minutes earlier than last week
50 minutes before the Sun
61.993 million miles from Earth
6,303,259 miles further than last week
8.410 million miles further than its nearest in April

Venus Rise = 5:46 a.m.
5 minutes earlier than last week
20 minutes before the Sun
157.651 million miles from Earth
1,430,361 miles further than last week
130.814 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 6:06 a.m.
8 minutes earlier than last week
93.596 million miles from Earth
10,670 miles further than last evening
173,989 miles further than last week
2,191,970 miles further than its nearest in January

Third Quarter Moon occurs on Wednesday, May 1st, at 5:27 a.m.

We’ve Gained 15 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 1 hour 10 minutes since last month, and 4 hours 1 minute since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 31,602,435 miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 7 hours 5 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Saturn Rise in the morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.4230 • 233 •

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THE 2024 GREAT AMERICAN ECLIPSE….

by William J. Bechaver

The latest Great American Eclipse is behind us, but the amazing event didn’t fail to intrigue us!

From Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico, we saw about seventy to eighty percent of the Sun’s disk obscured by the passage of the Moon.

Further south, the eclipse was total. For the latest astronomical event, I ventured down to Dallas, Texas, to immerse myself deep into the path of totality. The trek of over 800 miles was well worth the effort.

We arrived at our observation post the day before the event, under an evening of blue, clear skies.

On Monday morning, we awoke to a sky that was mostly overcast, and our hopes for a spectacular view waned. But as the observation time of noon approached, the clouds thinned and from that point on, we were graced with a beautiful view of the entire event.

It began at about 12:21, when the smallest of narrow slivers began to disappear from the edge of the Sun. As the event progressed, and more of the surface of the Sun disappeared behind the Moon, the spectacle climbed higher into the Texas sky.

As it neared totality a full hour after it had begun, thicker clouds began to threaten from the south. But shortly later, they had moved on without incident, and it was clear sailing through four full minutes of totality beginning at 1:41 for viewers from Dallas.

For those who have seen a total solar eclipse, it is difficult to put into words what affect the disappearance of the Sun during midday has on an individual. I have traveled wide to witness three total solar eclipses, each is as spectacular as the previous ones. The emotions elicited are moving, profound, and private, as they can not simply be put into words. I am glad I took this opportunity to travel to witness this most recent natural phenomena.

During the event, I befriended astrophotographer Shawn Parmer, who had traveled clear from Santa Clara, California, just for the opportunity to photograph the event. He has traveled to and captured several of the most recent events here in the States, including the annular eclipse back in October, for which I traveled to Santa Fe to observe. He provided me with the amazing photos I have included of the depth of the event.

During the period of totality, when darkness fell over Texas in the middle of the afternoon, you could see the darkened disk of the Sun and Moon flanked on either side by Jupiter and Venus, Jupiter to the east and Venus to the west. I kept an eye on them after totality had ended, and was amazed how long you could see the planets in the middle of the day, in somewhat less than broad daylight.

They say the population of Dallas was increased by more than a million souls on Monday, by people who had migrated to the metropolis solely for the reason of witnessing the grand event that was to unfold in the sky above. None who witnessed can regret the effort, nor will ever forget the amazement brought forth by The Great American Total Solar Eclipse Of 2024.

So, the solar eclipse of the year behind us, we were glad to have made the trip for this opportune event. There will not be another total solar eclipse viewable in the United States until 2033 in Alaska, or in 2044 only in Montana and North Dakota. The next total solar eclipse event to be viewed from coast to coast and in multiple states won’t occur until August 12th, 2045. Then, we won’t have to go far, for totality will cross much of our viewing area, in Southern Colorado.

Well, we know where the Moon was on Monday afternoon, as it was successfully blocking out the Sun for the solar eclipse. Just three days later, on Thursday 11 April, it will be positioned just above Jupiter and the Pleiades in the evening sky, just after sunset, until Jupiter sets, now just over two hours after the Sun.

This month, for a chance to find Uranus, look with binoculars for the distant ice giant planet situated just above Jupiter in the evening sky.

Mercury is the nearest planet to Earth right now, and making its closest passage this week. As Mercury is closest to Earth, it will be passing directly between us and the Sun, so will be lost from view when it is at its nearest to us.

Though Mercury is at its nearest on Thursday 11 April, it moves so rapidly that by only a week later, on the morning of Thursday 18 April, it will be visible in the morning sky, as it passes near Venus, very low along the eastern horizon in the morning sky, just before sunrise.

Saturn is now higher in the morning sky than is Mars, as it has successfully risen higher more quickly, and passed nearer Mars during its rapid morning climb. Both can now be found with a naked eye, in a relatively dark sky, about an hour and a half before sunrise.

This weekend, Saturn will rise first, with Mars rising only five minutes behind it. You will have to wait an entire hour after that before you have any chance of seeing Venus low along the horizon in a bright sky. Less than half an hour later, the Sun will enter the sky, so the chances to view Venus are growing rare. Mercury will be below Venus in the sky, but the tiny, dim planet has no chance to be viewed right now, in such a bright sky, so close before sunrise.

So, with the great eclipse event of the age behind us, there are plenty of opportunities to view the planets this week, as they move higher into our morning sky to improve the viewing, with better views in the coming months as they climb further from the Sun and Earth draws nearer them.

With all planets moving back into view, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:31 p.m.
6 minutes later than last week
93.233 million miles from Earth
183,595 miles further than last week
1.829 million miles further than its nearest in January

Jupiter Set = 9:35 p.m.
20 minutes earlier than last week
547.756 million miles from Earth
5,127,521 miles further than last week
177.432 million miles further than its nearest in November

Moon Set = 1:35 a.m.
59 minutes later than yesterday
239,998 miles from Earth
3,806 miles further than yesterday
16,998 miles further than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Saturn Rise = 4:52 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
92 minutes before the Sun
971.839 million miles from Earth
6,519,425 miles nearer than last week
23.674 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Mars Rise = 4:57 a.m.
13 minutes earlier than last week
87 minutes before the Sun
189.530 million miles from Earth
2,476,096 miles nearer than last week
47.454 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Venus Rise = 5:57 a.m.
6 minutes earlier than last week
27 minutes before the Sun
154.584 million miles from Earth
1,838,670 miles further than last week
127.746 million miles further than its nearest in August

Mercury Rise = 6:07 a.m.
34 minutes earlier than last week
17 minutes before the Sun
53.582 million miles from Earth
4,535,284 miles nearer than last week
75.519 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Sun Rise = 6:24 a.m.
10 minutes earlier than last week
93.245 million miles from Earth
11,606 miles further than last evening
182,744 miles further than last week
1,841,388 miles further than its nearest in January

First Quarter Moon occurs on Monday, April 15th, at 2:13 p.m.

We’ve Gained 16 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 73 minutes since last month, and 3 hours 31 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 39,662,716 miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 7 hours 17 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Saturn Rise in the morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

*Approaching totally. A “Diamond Ring” in the Texas sky. Three eclipse photographs provided by astrophotographer Shawn Parmer, from Santa Clara, California, and used with permiss*ion.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.3846 • 231 •

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THE GREAT AMERICAN ECLIPSE SEQUEL….

by William J. Bechaver

We last had an amazing total solar eclipse in this country back in 2017. It’s hard to believe it’s been almost seven years, but this week, we’re in for a treat, as the second total solar eclipse of the decade comes to our shores this week!

Totality won’t be visible from our viewing area, as the path of totality will be a bit to the south of us. But still, the eclipse event as seen from here will be better than that of 2017, appearing more total in our area. Between 70 percent and 85 percent of the Sun will be covered by the Moon when viewed from Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico, depending how far south you are when you are viewing. The further south, the greater the percentage of eclipse you will witness.

This year’s event for us will begin before Noon on Monday 8 April 2024. Remember, when viewing a solar eclipse, you must only view with proper eclipse viewing glasses, or by making a pinhole projector with a piece of paper or cardboard. For an interesting view, try using a kitchen colander and project a bunch of tiny eclipse images on the sidewalk. But never look directly at the Sun during any portion of a solar eclipse.

The first view of partiality will begin in our area around 11:30 a.m., when you will see an image of the Sun with a small bite covered. As you watch, the bite will gradually increase in size. The entire eclipse event will last for about two hours and a half, from beginning to ending. The greatest percentage of coverage will come at about 12:40 p.m., more than an hour after the eclipse began.

Then, depending on your vantage point, you will see a great deal of the Sun’s surface concealed by the passage of the Moon in front of the Sun. Up to eighty-five percent of the Sun may be concealed, depending on how far south you are viewing. If you travel further south, one hundred percent of the Sun will be concealed, as night comes to day, a total solar eclipse!

A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and Sun, blocking out the Sun, casting a shadow on the surface of the Earth. The closer you are to the path of the Moon’s shadow, the greater the eclipse you will see. If you are directly in the shadow path, you will see totality.

The entire eclipse won’t conclude in our area until about 1:50 p.m. Of course, all calculated times are Mountain Daylight Time, for our entire viewing area.

Take advantage of this opportunity to view a solar eclipse. Another total solar eclipse won’t occur in the United States until 2033 in Alaska, or in 2044 only in Montana and North Dakota. The next total solar eclipse event to be viewed from coast to coast and in multiple states won’t occur until August 12 2045. Then, we won’t have to go far, for totality will cross much of our viewing area, in Southern Colorado.

But if you can’t wait until then, you better get outside on Monday and view the best solar eclipse to be visible from our area since the Annular Eclipse viewed in New Mexico in October 2023.

For our planetary views, Jupiter is sinking ever lower in our western sky. Above Jupiter all month you can find faint, blue Uranus. But Uranus is so distant, it require binoculars to view it. The opportunities to find it will improve for a couple of weeks as it will appear closer to Jupiter as the gap between the two massive planets narrows when viewed from Earth.

On Saturday 6 April, Mars and Saturn will appear in the morning sky near each other. As they rise, try to locate the fine crescent Moon below the pair, almost directly below Saturn, just above the eastern horizon before sunrise. You will need diligent viewing practices to find the Moon before the rise of the Sun. But the gathering will be spectacular. You will need a low and clear horizon to find the faint, fine Moon before the Sun lightens the sky.

On Wednesday 10 April, the gap between Mars and Saturn will have closed considerably, as Saturn continues to climb more quickly than Mars. Both will appear in a relatively dark sky before sunrise, and there will be about a half a degree of separation between the two! That’s about the width of a Full Moon! From Wednesday on, Saturn will appear higher in the sky than Mars.

Saturn appears to climb more quickly because it is further from the Sun, and moving more slowly in a wider orbit. As Earth moves around the Sun, we are catching up to Saturn and Mars. But Mars is moving away at a greater pace, so we will catch up to Saturn before we pass Mars. As we gain on Saturn, it climbs higher more quickly because it is moving slower than Mars.

But by the time the two appear at their nearest position to each other, the Moon will have moved around into the evening sky once again. On the evening of Wednesday 10 April, after we have observed the morning planets at their closest position, we can find the crescent Moon in the evening sky, just above to the right of Jupiter.

The Moon will be about four degrees from Jupiter and Uranus on Wednesday evening. Above the Moon, find the Pleiades star cluster. The following evening, Thursday 11 April, the crescent Moon will actually be closer to the prominent star cluster, but it will reside above it to the left when the Sun sets.

In February, you will remember the Quarter Moon was near the Pleiades star cluster high in the sky at sunset. But as the constellations and star patterns progress ever westerly during the year, the Moon will encounter them earlier each month.

Now, this month, two months later, the Pleiades have moved further to the west, and the crescent Moon will encounter them a full four days before the first quarter phase, where it encountered them in February.

So, there are plenty of planetary viewing opportunities to be enjoyed this week. But for the best spectacle in the heavens, this week’s highlight event occurs during the daylight hours, with the total and partial solar eclipse, beginning on Monday morning.

With proper eye protection, during the daylight hours, if you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:25 p.m.
6 minutes later than last week
93.050 million miles from Earth
190,429 miles further than last week
1.646 million miles further than its nearest in January

Mercury Set = 8:07 p.m.
34 minutes earlier than last week
42 minutes after the Sun
58.118 million miles from Earth
11,224,022 miles nearer than last week
70.984 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Jupiter Set = 9:55 p.m.
20 minutes earlier than last week
542.629 million miles from Earth
5,946,879 miles further than last week
172.304 million miles further than its nearest in November

Mars Rise = 5:10 a.m.
14 minutes earlier than last week
84 minutes before the Sun
192.006 million miles from Earth
2,482,592 miles nearer than last week
44.978 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Saturn Rise = 5:18 a.m.
25 minutes earlier than last week
76 minutes before the Sun
978.358 million miles from Earth
5,557,202 miles nearer than last week
17.154 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Moon Rise = 6:00 a.m.
28 minutes later than yesterday
223,000 miles from Earth
794 miles nearer than yesterday
17,602 miles nearer than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Venus Rise = 6:03 a.m.
6 minutes earlier than last week
31 minutes before the Sun
152.745 million miles from Earth
2,035,903 miles further than last week
125.908 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 6:34 a.m.
10 minutes earlier than last week
93.062 million miles from Earth
12,457 miles further than last evening
189,928 miles further than last week
1,658,644 miles further than its nearest in January

New Moon occurs on Monday, April 8th, at 12:20 p.m.

We’ve Gained 17 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 74 minutes since last month, and 3 hours 15 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor is currently Mercury. It is 34,932,231 miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 7 hours 15 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Mars Rise in the early morning. No planets are visible with a naked-eye during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.3653 • 230 •

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MERCURY, THE “STAR” OF THE SHOW….

by William J. Bechaver

Mercury is the underrated star of the planetary show this week, so to speak.

The tiny planet Mercury is climbing to prominence in the evening sky right now, making a pretty decent appearance in the western sky after sunset.

This week, Mercury will attain its highest elevation from the setting Sun, garnering its highest position above the western horizon.

Even though it is making its best showing, Mercury will not appear all that high in the sky. Mercury’s greatest height will come on the evening of Sunday 24 March, when it will attain about nineteen degrees of separation from the Sun. Even though that is its greatest distance for this appearance, it will be only twelve degrees above the west-northwest horizon as the sky begins to darken after sunset, and Mercury will actually make its first appearance, about a half-an-hour after sunset.

So, with Mercury appearing that low in the west, you have to make sure you have a low and clear western horizon. Find it as early as you can, as the sky begins to darken around it. As always, with faint tiny planets appearing in a darkening sky, it helps to locate it first in a decent pair of binoculars. Then, once you find it, watch as the sky continues to darken, and Mercury sinks ever lower, you will be able to easily discern it above the western horizon as the glow fades from the sky.

But by the time it becomes a naked eye object, it will be very low in the west, sitting just above the horizon. It will disappear over the horizon about ninety minutes after the Sun, so the viewing window of opportunity may be narrow, but this will be the best evening viewing chance we will have all year.

For indeed, Mercury will appear in the evening sky three times this year. But this week’s apparition, the first of the three, will also be the best viewing of the year.

Mercury has brightened to easily be found with a naked eye right now. Part of the wonder of Mercury is its incredible speed around the Sun in its short orbit.

Mercury is an astounding 17,339,816 miles nearer Earth than it was just one week ago! Last week, it was further than the Sun. Now it is much nearer. Much of Mercury’s bright side is turned toward Earth right now, as it climbs to its highest position, and is coming nearer. Therefore, it appears brighter in our sky.

But by next weekend, the bright side of Mercury will begin to turn away from us, toward the Sun, as we will begin to view the dark side of Mercury. All the while, as it comes nearer, it sinks lower in our evening sky. So, though nearer, it will be dimmer as we see the night side of the tiny planet, and it will be three degrees lower in the sky, closer to the glare of the Sun, making it extremely hard to spot by the end of the month.

So, this is your opportunity to have the best view of Mercury this weekend, as it is at its highest, brightest, and coming nearer, appearing in our evening sky after sunset.

Saturn, in turn, will begin to make a decent appearance in our morning sky, before sunrise. In the east, low on the horizon, you will easily find Venus, as it sinks ever lower toward the Sun, preparing to make its apparent journey around the far side of the Sun.

If you look on Friday 22 March, Saturn appears just above bright Venus. Each morning thereafter, Venus will sink lower and Saturn will rise higher, climbing its way out of the Sun’s glare, into darker skies.

The descent of Venus will be slower, as it speeds away from Earth, making its slow plunge around the Sun.

The rise of distant Saturn will be more rapid, as Earth quickly gains on the distant, lumbering planet.

Venus shines the brightest of all the planets, because of its size, nearness to Earth, and its bright cloud-cover that reflects sunlight very well.

Mercury is bright too, but it is a rocky world, much like our Moon, and not much larger than our Moon. So even though it is much closer right now, it struggles to shine through the Sun’s evening glow.

Saturn is huge! It has bright reflective cloud-tops, and don’t forget the reflective surface of the massive ring system around the planet. But it is distant, so much further than Mercury or Venus.

Mercury is the closest planet right now. Venus is 65 million miles further away, 56 million miles further than the Sun, yet appears so much brighter.

Poor Saturn is nearly twelve times further than tiny Mercury, and nearly seven times further than Venus, more than ten times more distant than the Sun. That we can see Saturn at all at such a great distance is a testament to its incredible size. Its incredible ring system is nearly sixty times the size of tiny Mercury! Twenty three times further across than the planet Venus!

So, though the best view of Mercury is short lived, the best view of Saturn is just beginning, and will continue to improve for months to come, until finally we will be at our closest to Saturn, in the first week of September!

As always, there are incredible planets to behold. If you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:13 p.m.
7 minutes later than last week
92.672 million miles from Earth
178,938 miles further than last week
1.268 million miles further than its nearest in January

Mercury Set = 8:45 p.m.
23 minutes later than last week
92 minutes after the Sun
85.588 million miles from Earth
17,339,816 miles nearer than last week
43.513 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Jupiter Set = 10:35 p.m.
20 minutes earlier than last week
529.963 million miles from Earth
7,445,817 miles further than last week
159.639 million miles further than its nearest in November

Mars Rise = 5:37 a.m.
12 minutes earlier than last week
77 minutes before the Sun
196.980 million miles from Earth
2,504,878 miles nearer than last week
40.003 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Saturn Rise = 6:09 a.m.
25 minutes earlier than last week
45 minutes before the Sun
988.453 million miles from Earth
3,471,426 miles nearer than last week
7.060 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Venus Rise = 6:15 a.m.
5 minutes earlier than last week
39 minutes before the Sun
148.491 million miles from Earth
2,389,050 miles further than last week
121.653 million miles further than its nearest in August

Moon Set = 6:45 a.m.
63 minutes later than yesterday
252,419 miles from Earth
49 miles further than yesterday
11,675 miles further than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Sun Rise = 6:54 a.m.
11 minutes earlier than last week
92.685 million miles from Earth
12,765 miles further than last evening
179,212 miles further than last week
1,281,076 miles further than its nearest in January

Full Moon occurs on Monday, March 25th, at 1:00 a.m.

We’ve Gained 17 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 69 minutes since last month, and 2 hours 42 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 7,083,807 miles nearer than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 7 hours 2 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Mars Rise in the early morning. No naked-eye planets are visible during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
________________
• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.3269 • 228 •

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THE DAWN OF SPRING WITH SATURN IN THE EAST….

by William J. Bechaver

This week marks the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere.

The beginning of spring occurs when the Sun passes directly over the equator. The sunlight shines on both the north and south pole, exactly half of the planet is bathed in light, and half in darkness, from pole to pole, and it marks the midway point between the December Solstice and June Solstice. Winter is gone, and spring has sprung!

The motion of the Sun in our sky is due to the tilt of our planet. Earth is tilted on its axis, and because of this, the angle of light shining on our planet changes consistently throughout the year.

When the northern hemisphere is tilted most toward the Sun, we experience summer. When it is tilted furthest away, we experience winter. The nights are longer because the Sun is shining more directly on the southern half of the planet, warming it with longer days.

Throughout the cycle, there are two days when all seems to be equaled out. The Sun passes directly over the equator, light in the north and south are equal, and the length of day and night are equaled out, twelve hours of each!

This day, marking the first day of spring, is this week. There is an exact moment when the Sun is positioned above the equator, and that moment marks the equinox, the beginning of spring in the north, and autumn in the south.

This week, on Tuesday 19 March, at precisely 9:06 p.m., the Sun is directly above the equator, and spring begins.

From that moment forward, the sunlight will seem to progress northerly, our northern days getting longer, more light shining on our hemisphere, and less in the south, with our days warming toward the approaching summer.

Actually, for us here, our day of equal sunlight will come a few days before the actual equinox. On Saturday 16 March, we will have exactly twelve hours of daylight, and twelve hour of nighttime. Our daylight will actually be twelve seconds longer than our night on that day, but we won’t split hairs.

So, enjoy the last waning days of winter, as we approach our days of equal and lengthening light, into the spring.

As we know, our winter conditions often linger into the spring. It takes a while for the entire north to heat up, and for the winter conditions to subside with the warm up. That is why winter seems to linger into the springtime, and the warm weather of the dog-days of summer stretch into the autumn.

But, as we know, the Sun passes over the equator on Tuesday, and spring officially begins.

As the evenings begin to warm up, our opportunities to get out and view the planets and stars will improve. We will have fewer hours of night viewing, but the quality of viewing will be improved by warmer evenings and nights.

With our warming weather, this week provides our first opportunity to find Saturn as it is emerging into the morning sky, appearing before dawn for the first time since its disappearance in our evenings last month.

On the early morning of Thursday 21 March, Saturn can be spotted low on the horizon, only a half an hour before sunrise. It may be hard to find, but luckily, it will be appearing with Venus low on the eastern horizon.

Brilliant Venus will remain easy to find, even at its low position in the lightening sky. Though Saturn is so much larger, it is at such a greater distance, it will be much harder to sight on Thursday morning.

Look to the east before sunrise, and find brilliant Venus along the horizon. Below, and slightly to the left of Venus, your eyes will be able to discern distant Saturn, remaining at almost a billion miles from Earth!

By the following morning, Saturn will have climbed slightly, and Venus will have sunk, and faint Saturn will actually appear above Venus by Friday morning.

Though this provides the first chance to find Saturn in the morning sky, it nearly marks our last opportunity to find Venus.

Venus will continue to sink lower, preparing to pass around the far side of the Sun. Saturn is just emerging from the far side of its orbit, to be viewed for the first time as Earth continues to catch up to it in its slower, longer, more distant, lumbering orbit around the Sun.

Saturn will continue to climb higher, as Venus speeds away from us, sinking as it goes.

Above the pair, still faint Mars can more readily be seen above and to the right of the low planetary pair.

The best grouping of planets comes in the early morning sky.

Jupiter still shines high and brightly in our western evening sky. And now Mercury is emerging from the setting Sun, to be viewed above the western horizon before it sets. We’ll be able to find the tiny planet more readily next week, as it climbs higher from the glare, at a sharper angle above the horizon.

But, our best bet for planetary views comes in the early morning this week, as Venus meets Saturn above the horizon, for our first view of the pair in the spring morning sky.

As spring begins, we have opportunities to find a low planet pairing in the morning sky. If you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 7:06 p.m.
66 minutes later than last week
92.493 million miles from Earth
173,011 miles further than last week
1.089 million miles further than its nearest in January

Mercury Set = 8:22 p.m.
96 minutes later than last week
76 minutes after the Sun
102.928 million miles from Earth
13,801,056 miles nearer than last week
26.173 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Jupiter Set = 10:55 p.m.
39 minutes later than last week
522.517 million miles from Earth
8,123,745 miles further than last week
152.193 million miles further than its nearest in November

Moon Set = 2:50 a.m.
63 minutes later than yesterday
240,744 miles from Earth
3,697 miles further than yesterday
18,946 miles further than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Mars Rise = 5:49 a.m.
12 minutes earlier than last week
76 minutes before the Sun
199.485 million miles from Earth
2,512,549 miles nearer than last week
37.498 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Venus Rise = 6:20 a.m.
3 minutes earlier than last week
45 minutes before the Sun
146.101 million miles from Earth
2,555,364 miles further than last week
119.264 million miles further than its nearest in August

Saturn Rise = 6:34 a.m.
26 minutes earlier than last week
31 minutes before the Sun
991.924 million miles from Earth
2,361,815 miles nearer than last week
3.589 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Sun Rise = 7:05 a.m.
10 minutes earlier than last week
92.505 million miles from Earth
12,491 miles further than last evening
172,976 miles further than last week
1,101,864 miles further than its nearest in January

First Quarter Moon occurs on Saturday, March 16th, at 10:10 p.m.

We’ve Gained 17 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 67 minutes since last month, and 2 hours 25 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 10,434,947 miles further than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 54 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Mars Rise in the early morning. No naked-eye planets are visible during this period.

Note: Evening times differ by an hour this week, due to the beginning of Daylight Saving Time last weekend. Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
________________
• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.3076 • 227 •

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A WEEK OF LUNAR ENCOUNTERS AND DAYLIGHT SAVING….

by William J. Bechaver

Our week concludes with the amazing gathering of the Moon, Venus, and Mars in our morning sky.

On the early morning of Friday 8 March, go out and look to the east, before the Sun rises. You will find brilliant Venus low, above the horizon. Though it is sinking lower by the day, its brilliance shines through the glare of the Sun before dawn.

To the right of Venus, along the horizon, you will find a fine, crescent Moon, just a few degrees south of Venus.

These two brightest objects will guide us to the third, Mars. Mars rises before Venus now, and on Friday morning, it will be almost directly above the fine crescent Moon.

Mars has continued to be difficult to find in the morning glow. But it is climbing higher from the Sun, and brightening slightly, as Earth slowly moves nearer to it. In fact, this week, it has brightened to a magnitude 1.2, the threshold that is bright enough to easily find with a naked eye, though the lightening sky makes the task slightly more difficult.

But, on Friday morning, it may be our best chance to locate Mars with a naked eye for the first time, as it resides directly above the crescent Moon.

Catch this gathering early, for as the sky lightens with the approach of sunrise, Mars will quickly be lost, and it will be difficult to find even the Moon in the morning glow.

Our next lunar encounter comes days after the New Moon on the weekend.

On the evening of Wednesday 13 March, the crescent Moon will be found high in the evening sky, as the Sun sinks below the horizon. Looking to the west, Jupiter will be about three degrees to the lower left of the Moon’s lighted limb.

They will be at their closest just after sunset, making a beautiful sight in our evening sky. As the pair continues to sink toward the west in tandem, the space between the two will grow slightly, due to the motion of the Moon in its orbit around the Earth. By their setting, they will be more than four degrees apart. The change is barely noticable, but if you catch them just after sunset, and then before they set, about an hour before midnight, the difference will be noticeable.

On the following evening, Thursday 14 March, the Moon will have climbed up near the Pleiades star cluster. This marks their monthly encounter.

Last month, as we observed, you will remember that the star cluster was higher in the sky, and was encountered by the Quarter Moon. But, as the constellations progress westerly during the year, the Moon will encounter them during different times in its cycle. This month, it is a full three days before the Quarter Moon, or three days earlier than it encountered it last month.

This month’s passage of the Moon and the Pleiades will be beautiful to behold. The finer crescent Moon doesn’t shine as brightly, allowing the star cluster to shine through, making a more apparent pairing than that of last month.

To add to the grandeur, the winter constellations are now spread out across the night sky, a portent of the approaching spring.

On Thursday night, if you find the Moon with the Pleiades, then look up to the left, to find Aldebaran, the brightest star in the horns of Taurus The Bull. Further east, to the left of Taurus, you will find the three stars that make up the belt of Orion The Hunter, almost in perfect alignment with the Pleiades. Continue on in a straight line to the east, and you will find Sirius, the bright star of Canis Major, the Big Dog, and the brightest star in the night sky!

So, we’ll keep an eye on the winter constellations as they proceed west, not only as the Earth rotates nightly, but as the Earth orbits around the Sun, and the stars make their slow progression in a westerly direction, through our night sky.

And not intending to bury the lede, but this weekend marks the beginning of Daylight Saving Time. Don’t forget on Saturday night or Sunday morning, before going to bed, to spring your clocks forward one hour!

We have been hoping for years now, for the end of Daylight Saving Time, and the changing of our clocks. But, it will literally take an act of Congress to make it a reality, and that seems very unlikely in the present atmosphere, so don’t forget to spring forward this weekend!

But there are some amazing gatherings to witness this week, with the Moon and planets coming together in the morning and evening. If you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

No Moon In The Dark Sky
Moon Set = 5:26 p.m.
34 minutes before Sun Set
77 minutes later than yesterday
New Moon = 3:00 a.m.
Moon Rise = 7:35 a.m.
20 minutes after Sun Rise
89 minutes later than yesterday
221,798 miles from Earth
924 miles nearer than yesterday
18,656 miles nearer than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Sun Set = 6:00 p.m.
7 minutes later than last week
92.320 million miles from Earth
169,521 miles further than last week
916,362 miles further than its nearest in January

Mercury Set = 6:46 p.m.
40 minutes later than last week
13 minutes after the Sun
116.729 million miles from Earth
8,322,252 miles nearer than last week
12.372 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Jupiter Set = 10:16 p.m.
22 minutes earlier than last week
514.394 million miles from Earth
8,737,185 miles further than last week
144.069 million miles further than its nearest in November

Mars Rise = 6:01 a.m.
48 minutes later than last week
72 minutes before the Sun
201.998 million miles from Earth
2,506,541 miles nearer than last week
34.986 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Venus Rise = 6:23 a.m.
58 minutes later than last week
60 minutes before the Sun
143.546 million miles from Earth
2,722,169 miles further than last week
116.708 million miles further than its nearest in August

Saturn Rise = 7:00 a.m.
35 minutes later than last week
15 minutes before the Sun
994.286 million miles from Earth
1,214,843 miles nearer than last week
1.227 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Sun Rise = 7:15 a.m.
50 minutes later than last week
92.332 million miles from Earth
12,526 miles further than last evening
169,683 miles further than last week
928,888 miles further than its nearest in January

New Moon occurs on Sunday, March 10th, at 3:00 a.m.

We’ve Gained 16 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 65 minutes since last month, and 2 hours 8 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 24,396,488 miles further than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 45 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Mars Rise in the early morning. No naked-eye planets are visible during this period.

Note: Morning times differ by an hour this week, due to the beginning of Daylight Saving Time this weekend. Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.2884 • 226 •

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THE RARE QUADRUPLE CONJUNCTION….

by William J. Bechaver

The grandest conjunction of March comes in this first week, as the finest crescent Moon is descending in the eastern sky before sunrise.

You will decidedly need a lower and clear eastern horizon to witness the events of this week, as Venus is ever descending. But for a guideline, go out any time this week, before sunrise, and, looking east, locate brilliant Venus low in the morning sky.

Even though Venus has moved to a greater distance, it still shines brightly in the morning sky, even remaining visible after sunrise, if you look quickly. Keep an eye on it as it rises into an ever lightening sky, and as the dawn brightens the sky around it, watch as the spectacular planet remains in view as the surrounding stars and even nearby Mars, fade from view in the growing light.

But locating Venus earlier in the week will serve as a guide for finding the conjunction in the coming days.

As we watched last week, Venus passed Mars on its downward journey toward the Sun, and Mars continues to slowly climb higher. It is now above and to the right of Venus, more than four degrees separating the two planets.

This week, as the crescent Moon makes its descent in its cycle, it will have a near encounter with the planets as it makes its way lower.

On the morning of Thursday 7 March, look for Venus low on the horizon about a half an hour before sunrise. Above and to the right of Venus, you can see the faint glimmer of distant Mars. A good distance to the right of Mars, at about the same elevation above the horizon, will lie the beautiful crescent Moon.

The Moon will make its way over the horizon about 80 minutes before the Sun, so there will be a good opportunity to find it in a relatively dark sky.

About a dozen minutes behind the crescent Moon, Mars will rise, several degrees to the left. With the sky growing ever lighter, it will be easier to spot Mars with binoculars.

Then, at about twenty minutes after the appearance of Mars, brilliant Venus will make its way over the horizon. Although the sky will be lightening in anticipation of the Sun rise, you will have no trouble finding Venus.

The three aren’t yet close enough together to make a true conjunction, but the nearness of the objects in the predawn sky will be a beautiful sight to behold.

The following morning, the events are nearly the same. But you will notice there is no crescent Moon to guide you early on.

On Friday 8 March, you will need to find faint Mars without assistance, at the same time and location you found it on Thursday.

Twenty minutes after Mars, Venus will enter the sky, lower to the horizon, the two planets in much the same position as they were on Thursday. But you will have to wait 8 minutes after the appearance of Venus to find the finer crescent Moon, edging its way over the horizon, now below Mars and to the slight lower right of Venus.

The three will be within five degrees of each other, at about the limit for being considered an official scientific conjunction, but the gathering will be beautiful, and a great thing to witness, as the two planets and the Moon come together in our early morning sky.

We were promised a conjunction of four bodies, and that’s what we ultimately shall have. When, 45 minutes after the Moon, the Sun will rise above the horizon, completing the conjunction of four. Unfortunately, by then, faint Mars will be completely invisible, washed out by the increasing light.

Venus will be difficult to find at best, as the sky lightens and it now resides in the lower, brighter sky.

Only the fine crescent Moon will remain as the Sun rises, and even it will be difficult to find in a sky filled with light, and only if your sky is completely devoid of morning haze.

Saturn is still lost in the depths of its orbit on the far side of the Sun, not appearing in a dark sky at all this week.

Only Jupiter dominates the evening sky, now, as it is ever making its way to the west. It sets less than five hours after the Sun, leaving the darkest of the night sky planetless for nearly seven hours, until the rise of faint Mars in the early morning.

One other conjunction to consider this week is that of the Moon with the bright star Antares.

Antares is the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius. The Moon in its recent track across our sky has had several encounters with the bright star, at times even passing in front of it and blocking it from view, as it did for us in early January.

This time, the passage will be extremely close, while others in the south-eastern United States, and points south will see the star blink out behind the Moon.

For us here, watch as the last quarter Moon rises above the eastern horizon, just over an hour after midnight, in the early morning hours of Sunday 3 March.

Just to the right of the dark half of the Moon, you will easily see Antares, rising with the Moon. As the pair climbs together, the star will be easier to view when they pull above the horizonal haze.

As the Moon rises, Antares will be less than half a degree from the dark edge of the Moon, a spectacularly close conjunction with a distant star, to be viewed only from Earth.

But the entire time, as they rise, the distance between the Moon and Antares will increase, so the earlier you find them, the closer they will appear.

Watch as they rise, and you can actually discern the distance between the two grow wider, hour by hour. This is due to the movement of the Moon in its orbit around Earth. The rising of the pair in our sky is due to the rotation of the Earth.

Each hour, the pair will move fifteen degrees across the sky, due to the Earth’s rotation. By sunrise, the Moon will be about two degrees from Antares, high overhead. That two degrees of change is solely due to the Moon’s motion in its orbit around Earth.

This week is a week of amazing conjunctions, near-conjunctions, and spectacular pairings in our morning sky. If you only look to the sky this week, you are bound to see something amazing!

With our dark skies here, they only need to be clear, so keep your eyes on the skies from sunset to sunrise.

ASTRONOMICAL TIMES AND DISTANCES of naked-eye objects for this weekend.

Sun Set = 5:53 p.m.
7 minutes later than last week
92.150 million miles from Earth
157,657 miles further than last week
746,841 miles further than its nearest in January

Mercury Set = 6:06 p.m.
38 minutes later than last week
13 minutes after the Sun
125.051 million miles from Earth
3,665,188 miles nearer than last week
4.050 million miles nearer than its furthest in February

Jupiter Set = 10:38 p.m.
21 minutes earlier than last week
505.656 million miles from Earth
9,267,145 miles further than last week
135.332 million miles further than its nearest in November

Moon Rise = 1:07 a.m.
65 minutes later than last night
240,454 miles from Earth
3,291 miles nearer than last night
12,009 miles nearer than last week
Nearest is 221,557 miles
Furthest is 252,665 miles

Mars Rise = 5:13 a.m.
10 minutes earlier than last week
72 minutes before the Sun
204.504 million miles from Earth
2,495,430 miles nearer than last week
32.479 million miles nearer than its furthest in October

Venus Rise = 5:25 a.m.
1 minute earlier than last week
60 minutes before the Sun
140.824 million miles from Earth
2,881,702 miles further than last week
113.986 million miles further than its nearest in August

Sun Rise = 6:25 a.m.
9 minutes earlier than last week
92.163 million miles from Earth
12,364 miles further than last evening
158,641 miles further than last week
759,205 miles further than its nearest in January

Third Quarter Moon occurs on Sunday, March 3rd, at 8:23 a.m.

We’ve Gained 16 Minutes Of Daylight since last week, and 64 minutes since last month, and 1 hour 52 minutes since the December Solstice.

Our Nearest Planetary Neighbor currently is Mercury. It is 32,900,787 miles further than the Sun.

No Planet In The Dark Sky for 6 hours 45 minutes. This is the duration between Jupiter Set at night and Mars Rise in the early morning. No naked-eye planets are visible during this period.

Note: Times are local Mountain Time. Actual “sundown” is about a dozen minutes earlier than calculated “sunset”. Along the front range, differing times vary depending on your distance from the mountains.
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• · William J. Bechaver is the director of SPACE • Spanish Peaks Amateur Cosmos Enthusiasts, the premier Astronomical Society for Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico.

S·P·A·C·E•Date 16.2692 • 225 •

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