Spring Sky

by Gerald Rezes

The Vernal Equinox arrives at 1:25 pm (PDT) on March 20, 2027. The winter constellations are sinking into the west as the ones for spring are rising in the east. Spring constellations seem to lack the intensity of the winter ones but here are a few to keep in mind.

First off is Ursa Major which contains the more familiar asterism “The Big Dipper” (both not in the illustration). The Big Dipper is a familiar site to northern observers and offers several pointers to interesting objects. The two stars of the dipper point to Polaris the North Star. Just below the last star in the handle is M51, the brilliant Whirlpool Galaxy which is actually in the constellation Canes Venatici. Finally, in the handle, a test of eyesight, the middle “star” actually consists of two stars: Alcor and Mizar both are multiple star systems themselves. The Big Dipper’s handle curve suggests a great path to several bright Spring stars. Following the handle’s arc, the first bright star is Arcturus in Boötes followed by Spica in Virgo.

Moon Phases

Mar. 22 – Full Moon
Mar. 29 – Third Quarter
Apr. 6 – New Moon
Apr. 13 – First Quarter
Apr. 20 – Full Moon
Apr. 28 – Third Quarter
May 6 – New Moon
May 12 – First Quarter
May 20 – Full Moon
May 28 – Third Quarter
Jun. 4 – New Moon
Jun. 11 – First Quarter
Jun. 18 – Full Moon

All Pacific Times
(Source: Calendar-12.com)

Leo is probably one of the more familiar spring constellations. Leo is made up of a triangular grouping of stars for the lion’s hindquarters while the lion’s head and mane are represented by the backward question mark. The bright star Regulus marks the “period” in the question mark.

Hydra is one of the fainter constellations but is actually the largest. Look for the serpent’s circular head in the west, just ahead of Leo, and the body winding its way down and to the east until it stops just under Spica.

Messier Marathon

There are 110 astronomical objects cataloged by Charles Messier. In spring particularly at the end of March, northern hemisphere observers are in the position to attempt to obverse all 110 Messier objects in one night. The Messier Marathon is possible only at this time when the sun is positioned such that it is not obscuring any objects. Go about and try to find as many M numbers as you can. I personally like M104, the Sombrero Galaxy, a challenging object to spot from a suburban backyard.

Planets

Mercury starts as a morning planet and is in solar conjunction on April 28. It then transitions into the evening sky with highest altitude on May 26.
Venus is a brilliant morning planet throughout spring with several pairing with the moon.
Mars is an evening planet. There is a close approach to Jupiter on March 30.
Jupiter is a prominent evening planet with several close approaches to the moon: March 19 and April 15.
Saturn is at solar conjunction on April 7 and transitions to the morning sky.
Uranus starts as an evening planet but is at solar conjunction on May 26. It will be difficult to observe in both the evening and morning sky being so close to the sun.
Neptune is at solar conjunction on March 24. It will be difficult to observe in both the evening and morning sky being so close to the sun.
Pluto is in Capricornus in the morning sky.
Ref: In-The-Sky.org & The Sky Live.com