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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report through March 23, 2016. Here’s what’s happening in the skies of southern California.
The moon waxes from gibbous to full between the 16th and 23rd. The time of moonset during this period advances from 2:26 a.m. to 7:03 a.m. The full moon, on Wednesday morning, the 23rd, will skim through the outer regions of the earth’s shadow. This encounter with the shadow results in the subtle shading of the lower half of the moon called a penumbral lunar eclipse. The shading should be visible for about an hour centered on the eclipse maximum, at 4:47 a.m., PDT.
Shortly after sunset, the brilliant planet Jupiter, in the constellation Leo the Lion, is easy to spot low in the eastern sky. Jupiter reaches its highest point in the sky, 63 degrees above the southern horizon, at about midnight. The giant planet offers many interesting details to see through a telescope, including its colorful oval storm, the Great Red Spot. The Great Red Spot will face west coast observers at 9:00 p.m., PDT on the 19th and 21st. The small black shadows of Jupiter’s moons Io and Europa can be seen together as they transit the disk of Jupiter between 9:15 and 11:29 p.m., PDT, on March 21st. Our moon, a day before full, will appear close to Jupiter on the night of the 22nd. Jupiter is currently one of the objects featured through Griffith Observatory’s public telescopes.
The orange-hued planet Mars, in the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion and golden planet Saturn, in the constellation Ophiuchus the Snake-Bearer, both rise above the east-southeast horizon between midnight and 1:00 a.m., and are best placed for observation, side-by-side and 36 degrees above the southern horizon, at 6:00 a.m. Mars now outshines Saturn and will continue to brighten as it approaches its closest approach to the earth in late May. The sparkling orange star below Mars and Saturn is Antares, the brightest star of Scorpius. Antares marks the heart of the imaginary Scorpion, and its fiery hue resembles that of Mars. In fact, the name Antares is an ancient Greek name that means the “rival” or “equal” of Mars.
Spring begins in the earth’s northern hemisphere as autumn starts in the southern hemisphere at 9:30 p.m., PDT, on March 19th. This is the Vernal Equinox, and occurs when the sun crosses the celestial equator, heading north. Equinox means “equal night”, and refers to the fact that when the sun is crossing the equator, most of the earth has 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of night. Griffith Observatory will mark the change of seasons with special events, free to the public, on the 19th before local noon and before sunset. Spring ends at the summer solstice on June 20.
Free views of the sun during the day and of the moon, planets, and other celestial objects at night are available to the public in clear weather through Griffith Observatory’s telescopes from Tuesday through Sunday, before 9:30 p.m. Check our website for the schedule. The next public star party on the grounds of Griffith Observatory, hosted by the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Sidewalk Astronomers, and the Planetary Society, will take place on Saturday, April 16th.
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From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com