8 MUST-SEE Astronomy Events in March 2023!

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March 1: Close approach of Venus and Jupiter. The planets Venus and Jupiter will be within a mere 29 arcminutes from each other. The pair will be visible in the southwestern sky after sunset.

March 7: Full Moon. Native Americans called this last full moon of winter the worm moon, after the worm trails that would appear in the newly thawed ground. Other names include the chaste moon, crust moon, and sap moon, after the tapping of the maple trees.

March 15: The γ-Normid meteor shower. The γ-Normid meteor shower will be active from 25 February to 28 March, producing its peak rate of meteors around 15 March. The meteor shower will be visible in the southern hemisphere in the constellation Norma, with a ZHR of 4.

March 20: March equinox. The March equinox marks the first day of spring in the Northern hemisphere and the first day of autumn in the Southern hemisphere. On this day, everyone on Earth will experience almost exactly 12 hours of day and night. The word equinox is derived from the Latin words aequus (equal) and nox (night).

March 24: Close approach of the Moon and Venus. The Moon and Venus will make a close approach, passing within a mere 6 arcminutes. From some parts of the world, the Moon will pass in front of Venus, creating a lunar occultation. The pair will be visible in the western evening sky, just after sunset. The Moon will be 3 days old.

March 28: Close approach of the Moon and Mars. The Moon and Mars will make a close approach, passing about 2° of each other. The Moon will be 7 days old, and the pair will be visible in the southwestern sky after sunset. They will be too widely separated to fit the view of a telescope but will be visible to the naked eye or with a pair of binoculars.

March 29: Moon, first quarter. At this time in its monthly cycle of phases, the Moon appears almost exactly half-illuminated. The Moon orbits the Earth once every 29.5 days, causing its phases to occur.

March 31: Conjunction of Venus and Uranus. Venus will pass 1°17′ to the north of Uranus. The pair will become visible above the western horizon, as dusk fades to darkness. Venus will be at mag. -4.0, and Uranus at mag. 5.8, both in the constellation Aries. check. Thanks for watching!

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