THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM
70 Falmouth Street Portland, Maine 04103
(207) 780-4249 usm.maine.edu/planet
43.6667° N 70.2667° W
Founded January 1970 2022-2023: LXXXII
Sunrise: 6:16 a.m.
Sunset: 7:12 p.m.
Civil twilight begins: 5:47 a.m.
Civil twilight ends: 7:42 p.m.
Sun's host constellation: Pisces
Moon phase: Waxing gibbous (99% illuminated)
Moonrise: 6:50 p.m.
Moonset: 6:32 a.m. (4/6/2023)
Julian date: 2460039.29
"Men are from Earth, women are from Earth. Deal with it."
-George Carlin
THE DAILY ASTRONOMER
Wednesday, April 5, 2023
April 2023 Night Sky Calendar Part II
THURSDAY, APRIL 6: FULL MOON
Humans have bestowed a wide variety of nicknames to each full moon. These celestial sobriquets tend to be based on the seasons with which the given month is associated. April's full moon is no exception. We refer to April's full moon as the 'Pink Moon,' in reference to a type of wildflower that blooms this time of year. It is also known as the Egg Moon, Awakening Moon, Budding Moon, Seed Moon and Growing Moon. All these names evoke images of a world slowly but steadily warming as the ascending Sun delivers a sharp and wholly deserved posterior kick to Old Man Winter. Quite a lot of time will elapse before the Snow Moon, Ice Moon and Long Night Moon hang over our crystalline landscape again.
SATURDAY, APRIL 8, 2023:
ONE YEAR UNTIL THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE!!
TUESDAY, APRIL 11: VENUS 2.5 DEGREES SE OF THE PLEIADES
Yesterday we focused on the constellation transitions: the winter patterns soon destined to dissolve into the dusk and those preparing to emerge into the evening sky. This month we'll watch the Pleiades Star Cluster, the westernmost of the winter sky entourage, drawing ever closer to the setting Sun. Tonight, one will find the spectacular planet Venus rather 'close to it' Of course, the word 'close' is nowhere close to the truth. Whereas our infernally hot sister planet is a mere 104 million miles from Earth, the Pleaides Star Cluster is 444 light years, or 2,575,200,000,000,000 miles away.
TUESDAY, APRIL 11: MERCURY AT GREATEST EASTERN ELONGATION
Mercury is certainly a homebody of a planet in that it never strays far away from its parent star. In fact, we on Earth will never find the first world farther than 28 degrees from the Sun. Tonight, Mercury reaches its greatest eastern elongation of 20 degrees. As Mercury will be east of the Sun, it will be visible in the western evening sky. Mercury will set tonight at 9:02 p.m.
TUESDAY, APRIL 11: JUPITER IN SOLAR CONJUNCTION
While one will experience an easier time seeing Mercury tonight, Jupiter will be far out of our view. This bloated behemoth planet swings around the far side of the Sun today, a configuration known as superior solar conjunction. Jupiter will remain out of sight for the rest of April. The fifth world will climb back into view in the pre-dawn May sky. Throughout the following months Jupiter will be rising earlier and growing brighter until it reaches opposition on November 3, 2023.
THURSDAY, APRIL 13: LAST QUARTER MOON
SUNDAY, APRIL 16: MOON NEAR SATURN
Tonight one will see the waning crescent moon (16% illuminated) passing south of Saturn. One will observe both worlds low in the eastern pre-dawn sky. Look for them both by 4:45 a.m. Saturn will remain visible until the onset of civil twilight around 5:27 a.m.
THURSDAY, APRIL 20: NEW MOON
AN ANNULAR-TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE!!!
...visible in Oceania and southeast Asia. The map below shows the region in which this eclipse can be seen: about as far from us as it possibly could be.
Tomorrow we'll finish the April 2023 night sky calendar
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