Title: March Skywatch Highlights
Location: Hawaiian Islands
Date / Time: March 2008
Comments: The Vernal Equinox occurs on March 19th here in Hawaii, at 7:49 P.M. HST. This is the moment when the Sun crosses the celestial equator, marking the change in seasons from winter to spring. On the day of the equinox, the Sun rises exactly in the East, & sets exactly in the West, & day & night are the same length. After the equinox, the Sun will appear higher & higher in the sky & the days will grow longer. SATURN is already in the eastern sky at dusk & remains visible nearly all night long, among the stars of Leo. It outshines Leo's brightest star, Regulus, the "heart" of the lion, which lies a few degrees to the west of the ringed planet. On March 18th, watch for an almost-full Moon right next to the pair. Early evening, look for the unmistakable orange glow of MARS, nearly overhead right after sunset. Mars crosses from Taurus into Gemini on March 4th, & sits above the horns of bull & next to legs of Gemini brother Castor throughout March. On March 9th & 10th, watch for an attractive binocular pairing as Mars passes north of Gemini's bright open star cluster, M35. Early mornings, look for JUPITER rising in the southeast by 4 AM early in the month, and by 2:30 AM at months end. Jupiter appears near the handle of the Sagittarius "teapot" asterism, & is the brightest object aside from the Moon, until VENUS rises two hours later. In early March, VENUS and MERCURY appear together, low in the predawn sky. On March 5th, a thin crescent Moon will join the pair, but you may need binoculars to see them both, low in the eastern sky, about 45 minutes before sunrise. Look for the Southern Cross to rise around midnight in early March, and by 11:00 PM, later in the month, low on the southern horizon. Hawaii is one of the few places where we can see all the way from Polaris, the North Star, to the Southern Cross, a Polynesian navigation "star line" called Ka Iwikuamo'o, "The Backbone." Earlier in the evening, you can still see the signature winter constellations: Orion, Taurus, Gemini, Auriga, & Canis Major (Orion's "Big Dog"). For further details and a March sky map, visit Bishop Museum Planetarium www.bishopmuseum.org/planetarium (bishopmuseum.org).

Maintained by Roz Reiner - Kauai, Hawaii

 

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