March 19, 2021: Jupiter and Saturn climb into the morning sky. They are visible low in the southeast before sunrise. In the evening sky the crescent moon is near Mars in front of the stars of Taurus the Bull. Mars is to the lower right of the lunar slice.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:55 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 7:02 p.m. CDT. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times for your location.
Morning Sky
Two bright planets – Jupiter and Saturn – are low in the southeastern sky before sunrise. Saturn is nearly 11° up in the southeast. Brighter Jupiter – over 6° above the east-southeast horizon – is 10.3° to Saturn’s lower left.
Evening Sky
One hour after sunset, the waxing crescent moon is high in the west-southwestern sky in front of the stars of Taurus. The thick crescent is 3.2° to the upper left of Mars and 5.4° to the upper right of Aldebaran.
Use a binocular to inspect the moon’s surface, the Hyades star cluster, and the Pleiades star cluster.
With the binocular find Mars with the dimmer starry background. It is 0.6° above Upsilon Tauri (υ Tau on the chart). Notice that dimmer 72 Tauri (72 Tau) is between them.
Make nightly observations to watch Mars open a gap with υ Tau and move toward τ Tau.
Here’s more about Mars during 2021.
Read about Mars during March.
Detailed Note: Forty-five minutes before sunrise, Saturn is nearly 11° in altitude in the southeast. The Jupiter – Saturn gap is 10.3°, with Jupiter to Saturn’s lower left. One hour after sunset, the moon is about 55° up in the west-southwest, Mars (m = 1.2) is 3.2° to the lower right of the moon (6.6d, 35%). The lunar crescent is 5.4° to the upper right of Aldebaran. Use binocular to observe that the Red Planet is 0.6° above υ Tau, with dimmer 72 Tau between them. Mars is 3.2° to the lower right of τ Tau.
Read more about the planets during March 2021.
2021, November 8: Venus, Moon With Sagittarius
November 8, 2021: Brilliant Evening Star and the crescent moon shine among the stars of Sagittarius after sunset. Bright Mercury is a challenging view before sunrise.
2021, November 7: Venus, Moon Conjunction
November 7, 2021: During the early evening Venus and the moon group together in the southwest.
2021, November 6: Autumn’s Midpoint
November 6, 2021: The midpoint of Autumn occurs today.
2021, November 3: Unusual Mercury, Crescent Moon Spectacular
November 3, 2021: Before sunrise speedy planet Mercury, the crescent moon, and the star Spica are grouped together. The trio does not appear this close together again until 2033.
2021, October 31: NO Halloween Full Moon
October 31, 2021: There is no Halloween Full moon this year, and the phase is not close. The crescent moon is in the morning sky. Mercury is low in the east-southeast before sunrise. The planet pack – Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter – gleam in the evening sky.
Categories: Astronomy, Sky Watching
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