What's Up In The Sky Now?

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The month of March is usually not a favorable time for most kinds of viewing due to the serious lack of humor on Mother Nature’s part. However we will have a very nice conjunction of two of the planets that will make for a very exciting photographic moment.

MERCURY is dropping lower every day and is in conjunction with the Sun by the middle of the month. On March 27, just before sunset, Mercury meets up with Jupiter. Look quickly as both will drop out of sight in less than 30 minutes.

VENUS also has a close encounter with mighty Jupiter this month. On March 1st,

roughly one hour after sunset, fairly high in the west, these two bright planets will

grace the sky only one half a degree apart.

EARTH is undergoing what most consider a very rough month. March is a month on the home planet where just about any type of weather can or will occur. Hope for warm weather but keep the snow shovel close.

MARS is still an evening object and cruising along in Taurus. Weather permitting of course, this month offers a great opportunity to check out Mars and hopefully see some of its surface features.

JUPITER is drifting westerly and beginning to lose some of its bright luster. Jupiter is the "star" of the month as it passes very close to two other planets which always makes for a stunning Kodak Moment.

SATURN has left the night sky and can now be observed close to one hour before the sun rises. As the month progresses, Saturn will rise later and later before finally returning to the night sky later this year. Look for Saturn hanging around in Aquarius this month.

URANUS, not to be outdone by other planetary conjunctions this month, has one of its own as it slides past a thin crescent moon on March 24th. Separated by less than one degree, Uranus will be a fine binocular object this month.

NEPTUNE has gone bye-bye this month as it meets up with the Sun by the middle of the month.

• Full Moon, March 07
• Last Quarter, March 14
• New Moon, March 21
• First Quarter, March 28