By Pat Beers Block
Welcome Star Gazers to this month’s highlights of celestial events visible in Fluvanna County!
Fun events to view in March
This month reminds us of the special relationship planets residing between our planet Earth and the Sun have with Earth. Mercury and Venus are infrequently observed from Earth because of the Sun’s potent light that blinds us to the presence of these planets. But early this month, both Mercury and Venus will be visible in Fluvanna county. Another event that will be worth losing some sleep for is the total lunar eclipse that will occur mid-month. Other events that we have become accustomed to observing throughout the month can be expected to occur, including the moon going through its lunar phases, the presence of several interesting planetary and star occultations (overshadowing of one celestial body over another) and conjunctions (remote objects visually appearing close to one another), and the patient and reliable clockwork of the stars and planets circling the sky. There is one minor meteor shower that will occur mid-month but with the moon in its full phase, it is doubtful that we will observe any meteors that might fall through Earth’s atmosphere.
Hopefully some of these events capture your interest and motivate you to set up your sky gazing equipment and spend time observing the night and early morning dark sky this month. So let’s get ready to engage in observing these events by setting up your star gazing equipment, charging your cell phones and linking to Sky Guide, Sky View Lite, or any other star gazing applications that you find useful, and settling into your favorite viewing spot to witness the magic of the night and early morning skies!
Weeks 1 (March 1-8)
March 1 is a good evening to view the planet Venus in conjunction with the waxing (getting larger) crescent moon. Venus will be a bright light in the early evening sky.
On the evening of March 5, the moon will be in conjunction with the Pleiades star cluster (aka the 7 Sisters, and Messier 45) that is found within the Taurus constellation. On the morning of March 6, the moon will be in its first quarter phase. Remember, when the moon enters this phase, the Earth experiences neap tides. The moon will appear to be a “half-moon” with the right side of the moon illuminated with light.
On March 8, the waxing moon will be in conjunction with Mars and the stars Caster and Pollux in the constellation Gemini.
Week 2 (March 9-15)
On the night of March 9 through March 18, both Mercury and Venus will be visible in the evening sky just after sunset. During this time, these planets appear to move closer together, then separate by the 18th.
On March 10, the moon will be in conjunction with the Beehive star cluster (aka Messier 44) located within the constellation Cancer.
The full moon appears on March 14 and bears the colloquial name of the Worm Moon, so named by Native Americans because of the presence of worms on the landscape as the ground warms. As winter’s chill is replaced by warming temperatures, the soil softens and worms become active and visible on the ground; Worm moon is a very appropriate name. This moon has also been referred to as the Crow moon, Crust moon, and the Sap moon.
While in its full moon phase, the moon will experience a total lunar eclipse on March 14. For all of you early morning risers, you will enjoy this event between midnight and 3:30 am, with the total eclipse occurring around 2:30 a.m. At this time, the moon, also called the Blood moon during this eclipse, will appear blood red as the sunlight that filters through the Earth’s atmosphere reflects from the moon’s surface as a reddish light. The moon will be located within the constellation Virgo, between the stars Spica and Regulus of the constellation Leo.
Week 3 (March 16-22)
The moon will be in conjunction with the star Spica within the constellation Virgo on March 16.
The Spring Equinox, a time in the calendar year when both day and night are identical in length, occurs on March 20. This marks the official start of Spring in the Northern hemisphere. Also on this date, the moon is in conjunction with the star Antares, the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius.
The moon moves into its last quarter phase on March 22. The moon will be illuminated on the left half of its surface.
Week 4 – 5 ( March 23-31)
As the month ends, the night sky grows quiet. The last events are on March 29 when the moon moves into its new phase, at which time the moon will no longer be visible except as a ghost-like sphere in the sky, and the conjunction of Mars and the star Pollux of the constellation Gemini occurs.
In Summary…
So ends the celestial highlights of March. We have much to be excited about this month. We can enjoy longer days as we converge on the Spring Equinox; and the full moon with its total eclipse promises to an enjoyable experience as its blood red color captures our attention.
Beyond these noted events, it is worth exploring celestial stories and events that are posted on NASA’s homepage, and visiting websites that provide information about space rocket and satellite launches, the travels of the ISS, and aurora borealis flare-ups that might be visible in Fluvanna county.
With the perpetual motion of planets and stars, the daily changing sky promises to entertain you for a lifetime! Until next month, keep your eyes facing the morning and evening sky to see the wonders of our universe as we Earthlings travel through it!
[information has been extracted from Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events 2025 – Sea and Sky (seasky.org); https://eclispe.gsfc.nasa.gov; https://highpointscientific.com/astronomy-hub; https://amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers; and Wikipedia]
