Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday March 18 through Sunday March 24.
The moon was at first quarter on Saturday the 16th and will reach full in the early morning hours of Monday the 25th, so we’ll have a waxing gibbous moon all of this week.
Mercury is at greatest elongation on Sunday night and then it will begin sinking back towards the sun and its next solar conjunction. Mercury will be setting at 9:10 p.m. that evening, almost an hour and a half after sunset.
Jupiter is high in the west at sunset and is setting at 11:00 p.m. at midweek.
In the morning skies, Mars is rising at 6:05 a.m., followed by Saturn and Venus at 6:45 a.m., which will be separated by only one third of a degree on Thursday morning.
The vernal equinox for the northern hemisphere occurs at 10:06 p.m. on March 19th for the US central time zone marking the start of spring. This is the point where the sun crosses the celestial equator, and the amount of daylight and night are approximately equal. For the northern hemisphere the amount of daylight will continue to grow until the June solstice.
Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building is on Wednesday nights now from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. PMA is located on the southeast corner of Dean Keeton and Speedway. Take the elevator to the 17th floor and follow the signs to the telescope.
Public viewing at the 9-inch refractor at Painter Hall is on Friday and Saturday nights now from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. Painter Hall is located on 24th street about halfway between Speedway and Guadalupe and is northeast of the UT Tower. Take the elevator to the 5th floor then take the stairs up to the 6th floor and follow the signs up to the telescope.
All events are free and open to all ages and no reservations are required. Note that viewing times and availability change throughout the year so please check the schedule before planning a visit. Observing events are weather permitting. Please call 512-232-4265 for weather cancellation information, which is updated 30 to 45 minutes before the scheduled viewing start time.
Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.
