Find out when spring and daylight saving time start. Follow the moon as it sails past observing targets and catch a bounty of spring galaxies.
The First Day of Spring
Spring begins in March. The first day of spring occurs with the vernal equinox on March 20 at 1:48 am EDT for the Northern Hemisphere. On the West Coast, spring arrives on the other side of midnight than for people on the East Coast. Therefore, spring begins on March 19 at 10:48 pm PDT for the other half of America.
Daylight Saving Time
Daylight Saving Time (not Daylight Savings Time) has been moved up to allow for more light during the evening hours and less in the morning. Daylight Saving Time begins on Sunday, March 9, for the United States and Canada. Generally you can set your clock back before you go to bed on Saturday, March 8, but specifically the time change is supposed to occur at 2 a.m. on March 9. Therefore, sunrise will occur a little after 7 am on the 9th and sunset will occur just before 7 pm. The day before sunrise was around 6 am and sunset around 6 pm.
The Moon and Planets in March
The moon reaches new phase on March 7 at 12:14 pm EST. Some observers may be trying for a Messier Marathon on this date while others may wait until the new moon in early April. A young moon is a beautiful and easy spot on March 8 in the west. March 12 the moon nears the Pleiades and Hyades clusters in Taurus and its bright star Aldebaran. Mars becomes the moon's partner on March 14. Four days later the moon meets with Saturn. The star Regulus is the next brightest object nearby. Full moon occurs on on March 21 at 2:40 pm EDT. The next night, the moon approaches Spica in Virgo.
Saturn and Mars are both up in the evening sky shining around magnitude 0. Saturn is the yellowish looking star in Leo. Mars is the orangish looking star in Gemini. On March 11, Mars stands near the bright open cluster M35.
The bright planets, Venus (-3.8) and Jupiter (-2) are in the morning sky. Jupiter is in Sagittarius. Venus is moving fast through Capricornus and Aquarius toward the horizon. It's being shadowed by Mercury at magnitude 0. On March 7, 8th magnitude Neptune is less than a degree from Venus. The next day Neptune is between Venus and Mercury. Neptune will be difficult to see with the rising sun fast approaching. On March 24, Venus and Mercury are less than one degree apart a half hour before the sun.
Where to Find Spring Galaxies: Spring is the best season to hunt for galaxies. Great swaths of galaxies lie behind the tail of Leo in Virgo and Coma Berenices. Follow the links for the two constellations to learn more about the galaxies in the area. Many of them are 8th and 9th magnitudes, which can be tracked down in small telescopes.
