the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
What is man, that thou art mindful of him?
Psalm 8:3,4
(From Astronomy and Sky & Telescope Magazines)
The Moon reaches perigee, the closest point to Earth in its orbit, at 1:25 A.M. EDT. At that time, our satellite will sit 222,530 miles away.
Venus passes 10° north of Saturn at 2 A.M. EDT.
Monday, March 31
The crescent Moon stands 8° west of Uranus tonight, slowly setting in the west after the sky grows dark. By 9:30 P.M. local daylight time, the Moon is some 10° above the western horizon, located in central Aries. To its upper left, Uranus lies just over the border in Taurus.
Tuesday, April 1
The Moon now passes 5° north of Uranus at 10 A.M. EDT.
Moving along the ecliptic, the Moon passes 6° north of Jupiter at 8 P.M. EDT. You can enjoy the pair in the western sky long after sunset, with the Moon hanging to the upper right of bright Jupiter, both in Taurus the Bull.
Thursday, April 3
Early risers can enjoy the constellation Scorpius standing on its tail in the south two hours before sunrise this morning.
Located near the stinger in the Scorpion’s tail, bright magnitude 3.3 M7 is also known as Ptolemy’s Cluster. Spanning some 80’, you can find it just over 4.5° northeast of Shaula (Lambda [λ] Scorpii).
Known since ancient times, this cluster is visible to the naked eye under good conditions.
Friday, April 4
First Quarter Moon occurs at 10:15 P.M. EDT. Our satellite is now in Gemini, quickly catching up to Mars. Tonight, you can find it below Castor and Pollux, the heads of the Twins, and to the lower right of the Red Planet, which is finally starting to pull away from Kappa Gem. Just look southwest an hour after sunset.
Saturday, April 5
Now it's the turn of Mars to pair with the Moon.
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