Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Today: The Vernal or Spring Equinox marks the calendar arrival of Spring late this evening at 11:06 PM EDT, when the Sun is positioned directly above the Earth’s equator. Although the word equinox means “equal night”, the atmosphere bends the...

Monday, March 18, 2024

Today: Today marks the anniversary of the discovery of Pluto. Clyde Tombaugh was examining pictures taken through the telescope at the Lowell Observatory in Arizona in January, 1930, over a period of days. One of the “stars” in the image moved while the stars remained...

Sunday, March 17, 2024

Today: The Big Dipper looks like a question mark in the northeast. After months of asking “when is Spring?”, follow this question mark’s curve to find a star that announces Spring to our skies. Rising near 8:00 PM this evening, the bright star...

Saturday, March 16, 2024

Today: Over the next 10 days, the planet Mercury puts on an excellent display in the western twilight, though our closest planet to the Sun never appears very high. Find a low, level view to the west, and starting near 7:30 PM, scan a little more than a hand-width...

Friday, March 15, 2024

Today: The Ides of March meant the middle of March to the Romans, and specifically the Full Moon, because their calendar was a lunar calendar. Today’s standardized calendars are no longer lunar, which explains why the Moon is not Full, but a wide, waxing...

Thursday, March 14, 2024

Today: Last night’s Crescent Moon is a little larger, and a little brighter, making it challenging to see the faint cluster of stars just above the Moon this evening. Patience, and perhaps a spotting scope or binoculars should reveal the tight collection of...