This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, March 25, 2022.
Information updated weekly or as needed.
Times given as local St. Louis time which is Central Daylight Time (CDT). For definitions of terminology used in the night sky update, click the highlighted text. If relying on times posted in Universal Time (UT), St. louis is -5 hours when CDT.
Public Telescope Viewings
With the changing recommendations from the CDC regarding COVID-19, conversations regarding the return of star parties at the Saint Louis Science Center have begun. We are close to bringing back our public telescope viewings, but a few details still need to be worked out. We will post future updates as we learn more about when we can bring back telescope viewings.
Observing Highlight of the Week
The The Moon approaching Venus, Mars and Saturn from March 25 to March 28, 2022. Image created using Stellarium
This week the Moon will join the planets Venus, Mars and Saturn in the morning hours before sunrise. For those willing to look around 6:00 a.m., you will be able to follow the Moon as it appears closer to these planets each day leading up to the 28th.
On Friday, March 25, 2022, the Moon will exhibit a waning crescent phase. As the week continues, the Moon will exhibit thinner and thinner crescent phases as it heads towards new moon on April 1, 2022. If you watch the Moon this week you can find it passing through the constellations Sagittarius and Capricornus. Also of note, new moon on April 1, 2022, is the first of two new moons occurring in April 2022. When two full moons occur in a month, the second full moon is a “Blue Moon”. Some have taken to calling the second new moon in a month a “Black Moon”, but there is no official designated name for this phenomenon.
As we reach March 28, 2022, you will find the Moon paired with Venus, Mars and Saturn about an hour before sunrise. The Moon passes by each of the planets every month, but currently we can see most of the visible planets grouped together in the morning sky. As we near the end of April 2022, Jupiter will join the mix and a similar display of Moon and planets will unfold. The display on March 28, 2022, will be a tighter grouping as the Moon, Venus, Mars and Saturn will be together in a 7° patch of sky.
The Sun and Moon
The Moon as seen from the International Space Station, on July 31, 2011.
Credit: NASA
Sunrise is at 6:56 a.m. on Friday, March 25 and sunset is at 7:18 p.m. providing us with a bit under 12.5 hours of daylight. Even after sunset, the light from the Sun will dimly illuminate our sky for roughly 1 hour and 30 minutes. This period is called twilight, which ends around 8:48 p.m. this week. For those with a sundial, local noon occurs around 13:07 p.m. this week.
| Day | Sunrise | Sunset |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-03-25 | 6:56 a.m. | 7:18 p.m. |
| 2022-03-26 | 6:55 a.m. | 7:18 p.m. |
| 2022-03-27 | 6:53 a.m. | 7:19 p.m. |
| 2022-03-28 | 6:52 a.m. | 7:20 p.m. |
| 2022-03-29 | 6:50 a.m. | 7:21 p.m. |
| 2022-03-30 | 6:48 a.m. | 7:22 p.m. |
| 2022-03-31 | 6:47 a.m. | 7:23 p.m. |
| 2022-04-01 | 6:45 a.m. | 7:24 p.m. |
| 2022-04-02 | 6:44 a.m. | 7:25 p.m. |
Moon
Moonrise for Friday, March 25 occurred at 2:52 a.m. and moonset will occur at 12:03 p.m. On Friday, March 25 the Moon will exhibit a waning crescent moon phase with 44% of the lunar disk illuminated. New moon occurs on April 1, 2022, at 1:25 a.m.
International Space Station (ISS) Observing
Visible passes of ISS from St. Louis for the week of March 25 occur during evening hours. The best passes occur on the evenings of March 31 and April 2. Use the table below for information about these and other visible passes this week.
Catch ISS from St. Louis starting Friday, March 25
| Date | Starts | Max. altitude | Ends | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | Time | Alt. | Az. | ||
| 28 Mar | -0.7 | 21:51:28 | 10 | NNW | 21:52:12 | 14 | NNW | 21:52:12 | 14 | NNW |
| 29 Mar | -1.8 | 21:03:42 | 10 | NNW | 21:06:08 | 20 | NNE | 21:06:08 | 20 | NNE |
| 30 Mar | -1.4 | 20:15:58 | 10 | NNW | 20:18:03 | 15 | NNE | 20:20:05 | 10 | ENE |
| 30 Mar | -1 | 21:51:55 | 10 | NW | 21:53:01 | 19 | NW | 21:53:01 | 19 | NW |
| 31 Mar | -3 | 21:03:59 | 10 | NW | 21:07:00 | 41 | NNE | 21:07:00 | 41 | NNE |
| 01 Apr | -2.4 | 20:16:07 | 10 | NNW | 20:19:03 | 27 | NNE | 20:21:01 | 16 | E |
| 01 Apr | -1 | 21:52:46 | 10 | WNW | 21:53:57 | 19 | W | 21:53:57 | 19 | W |
| 02 Apr | -3.6 | 21:04:32 | 10 | WNW | 21:07:52 | 64 | SW | 21:08:02 | 63 | SSW |
Magnitude (Mag): The Measure of brightness for a celestial object. The lower the value is, the brighter the object will be.
Altitude (Alt): The angle of a celestial object measured upwards from the observer’s horizon.
Azimuth (Az): The direction of a celestial object, measured clockwise from an observer’s location with north being 0°, east being 90°, south being 180° and west being 270°.
For information about ISS flyovers and other visible satellites, visit www.heavens-above.com
Detailed information regarding all unmanned exploration of our universe, missions past, present, and planned, can be found at Jet Propulsion Laboratories:
The Visible Planets
Looking southeast at 6:00 a.m. March 26, 2022. Credit: Stellarium, EG
This week, three naked eye planets are visible. Venus, Mars and Saturn are seen in the southeast before sunrise.
Venus
Venus has started a morning apparition and will be seen in the southeast before sunrise. Venus rises at 4:55 a.m. and should be easy to spot in the southeast by 5:30 a.m. Venus reaches greatest western elongation on March 26. This morning apparition lasts until the third week of October 2022. Venus reaches superior conjunction on October 22, 2022.
Mars
A new apparition for Mars has begun. Mars rises at 4:55 a.m. Start looking for Mars around 5:30a.m. as it clears trees and buildings. Mars will continue to climb out of the Sun’s glare as it heads towards opposition later this year on December 7, 2022.
Saturn
Saturn has started its apparition for 2022. You can find Saturn in the southeast about 30 minutes before sunrise. You will need a clear view of the horizon to spot Saturn.
James S. McDonnell Planetarium
Night Sky Update: March 25 – April 2, 2022