March Skies

Leading off this month, most of us in the northern hemisphere will be treated to an early morning total lunar eclipse on March 3rd. If you are a die-hard eclipse watcher this will be the last full lunar eclipse viewable for us in North America until June 26, 1929! The eclipse will begin with first contact 01:43 a.m. MST. Totality begins 4:34 a.m. MST and ends 59 minutes later at 5:02 a.m. MST. The eclipse will end at 7:25 am MST. A good place to check for cloud cover in your area is windy.com.

To kick off our monthly planetary parade you should turn your attention to the western horizon on March the 7th, about 30 minutes after sunset. Just a few degrees above the horizon Venus and Saturn will be just 1 degree apart. Since Venus is so much brighter than Saturn, you might need some binoculars to see Saturn during this close encounter.

Jupiter, at magnitude -2.4, shines brightly high in the early evening sky. The four gallian moons are always a treat to view. Not far too the south of Jupiter is the bright star Sirius which happens to be the brightest star we can see naked eye from Earth. However, at this time of the year some of us can also see the second brightest star, Canopus. Canopus is located way south just above the southern horizon. From here in Socorro, it is visible for a couple of hours and is found by following an imaginary line straight south from Sirius! If you live north of 34 degrees latitude you are out of luck. In addition to being the 2nd brightest star viewed from Earth, Canopus holds another interesting distinction. In the early days of our country’s space exploration, spacecraft launched beyond Earth orbit into the outer regions of the solar system needed a position reference to keep on course. To do this, spacecraft were equipped with a small optical device known as a “Canopus Tracker”, to lock on to the star and guide them on their way. I always like to find Canopus this time of the year because it reminds me of the early days of our space explorations.

For a good part of this month Mercury hovers above the eastern horizon reaching its highest altitude above the horizon on the 27th before it begins its decent toward conjunction with the Sun in April.

The Moon will be full on the 3rd, last quarter on the 11th, new on the 19th, and first quarter on the 25th. Looking high up to the South on the 25th and 26th, about one hour after sunset, the first quarter Moon will bracket Jupiter in the constellation Gemini.

On Sunday March 8, Daylight Savings Time will begin at 2 a.m. for most of us in the U.S. and Canada. On the 20th, Spring begins for the Northern Hemisphere at 8:46 a.m. MDT.

The first Saturday star party will be held on Saturday March 7, at the Etscorn Campus Observatory. To reach the observatory take Canyon Dive past the golf course. At the stop sign turn right on Buck Wolfe Drive. At the top of the dip in the road, turn left and follow the signs to the observatory.

Clear Skies!

Jon Spargo

New Mexico Tech Astronomy Club

March 2026