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SKY MAP SHOWS HOW
THE NIGHT SKY LOOKS
EARLY MAR 9 PM
LATE MAR 8 PM
SKY MAP DRAWN FOR
A LATITUDE OF 35°
SOUTH AND IS
SUITABLE FOR
LATITUDES UP
TO15°NORTH
OR SOUTH
OF THIS
SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE
MARCH 2023
(Add 1 Hour For Daylight Saving)
Sirius, Canopus and
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From southern latitudes, stars appear to rotate around the South Celestial Pole (SCP).
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Sky Calendar – March 2023
2 Venus 0.5° NNW of Jupiter at 6h UT (31° from Sun, evening sky).
Mags. –4.0 and –2.1.
3 Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 18h UT (distance
405,889km; angular size 29.4').
4 Moon near Beehive cluster M44 at 8h UT (evening sky).
6 Moon near Regulus at 5h UT (evening sky).
7 Full Moon at 12:42 UT.
10 Moon near Spica at 14h UT (morning sky).
14 Moon near Antares at 2h UT (morning sky).
15 Last Quarter Moon at 2:09 UT.
17 Mercury at superior conjunction with the Sun at
11h UT. The inner planet passes into the evening sky.
19 Moon at perigee (closest to Earth) at 15:10 UT
(distance 362,696km; angular size 32.9').
19 Moon near Saturn at 18h UT (morning sky). Mag. 0.9.
20 Dwarf planet 1 Ceres at opposition at 21h UT.
Mag. 6.9.
20 Vernal equinox at 21:23 UT. The time when the
Sun reaches the point along the ecliptic where it
crosses into the northern celestial hemisphere
marking the start of spring in the Northern Hemi-
sphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere.
21 New Moon at 17:26 UT. Start of lunation 1240.
22 Moon near Jupiter at 21h UT (evening sky). Mag. –2.1.
Occultation visible from northern South America.
24 Moon near Venus at 11h UT (36° from Sun, evening sky).
Mag. –4.0. Look out for this spectacular sight! Occultation
visible from parts of Asia and Africa.
26 Moon near the Pleiades at 2h UT (evening sky).
28 Moon near Mars at 14h UT (evening sky). Mag. 0.9.
29 First Quarter Moon at 2:32 UT.
31 Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 11h UT (distance
404,919km; angular size 29.5').
31 Moon near Beehive cluster M44 at 15h UT (evening sky).
More sky events and links at http://Skymaps.com/skycalendar/
All times in Universal Time (UT). (Australian Eastern Daylight Time = UT + 11 hours.)
Galaxy
Double Star
Variable Star
Diffuse Nebula
Planetary Nebula
Open Star Cluster
Globular Star Cluster
Star Magnitudes
Symbols
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INSTRUCTIONS: THE SKY MAP SHOWS THE ENTIRE NIGHT SKY FROM HORIZON-TO-HORIZON
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BEGIN
BY
USING
THE SKY MAP TO FIND A BRIGHT STAR PATTERN IN THE SKY.

2. Easily Seen with the Naked Eye
Easily Seen with Binoculars
Telescopic Objects
Sirius CMa The brightest star in the sky. Also known as the "Dog Star". Dist=8.6 ly.
Procyon CMi Greek name meaning "before the dog" - rises before Sirius (northern latitudes). Dist=11.4 ly.
Canopus Car Second brightest star in the sky. 14,000 times more luminous than the Sun. Dist=309 ly.
β Centauri Cen With Alpha Centauri, forms the so-called "Pointers-to-the-Cross". Dist=525 ly.
α Centauri Cen Nearest bright star to Sun at 4.4 ly. Brilliant double star in a telescope. 80 year period.
Coalsack Cru Most famous naked-eye dark nebula. Requires dark sky. Dist=600 ly.
Achernar Eri Brightest star in Eridanus, The River. Arabic name meaning "end of river". Dist=140 ly.
Castor Gem Multiple star system with 6 components. 3 stars visible in telescope. Dist=52 ly.
Pollux Gem With Castor, the twin sons of Leda in classical mythology. Dist=34 ly.
Regulus Leo Brightest star in Leo. A blue-white star with at least 1 companion. Dist=77 ly.
Rigel Ori The brightest star in Orion. Blue supergiant star with mag 7 companion. Dist=770 ly.
Betelgeuse Ori One of the largest red supergiant stars known. Diameter=300 times that of Sun. Dist=430 ly.
Aldebaran Tau Brightest star in Taurus. It is not associated with the Hyades star cluster. Dist=66.7 ly.
Spica Vir Latin name means "ear of wheat" and shown held in Virgo's left hand. Dist=250 ly.
M44 Cnc Praesepe or Beehive Cluster. Visible to the naked eye. Dist=590±20 ly.
M41 CMa First recorded observation by Aristotle in 325 BC as "cloudy spot". Dist=2,300 ly.
2516 Car Spectacular open star cluster of 100 stars spaning 1/2 deg. Dist=1,300 ly.
2808 Car Located 4 deg W of Nu Carinae. Visible to the naked eye on clear nights.
R Carinae Car Long period variable. Magnitude varies between 3.9 & 10.5 over 309 days.
3114 Car Stunning open cluster. 30+ stars visible through 7x binoculars. Dist=2,900 ly.
3293 Car Rich, tightly packed. Surrounded by large, faint nebulosity. Dist=8,500 ly.
IC 2602 Car The "Five of Diamonds". Bright cluster twice diameter of full Moon. Dist=491 ly.
3372 Car Eta Carinae Nebula. Enormous glowing cloud in rich star field. Dist=8,000 ly.
3532 Car Herschel - "most brilliant cluster". 60+ stars in 7x binoculars. Dist=1,300 ly.
ω Centauri Cen Largest and brightest globular star cluster in sky. 1 million stars. Dist=17,000 ly.
4755 Cru Jewel Box. Outstanding star cluster. Many contrasting colours. Dist=7,600 ly.
LMC Dor Large Magellanic Cloud. A neighbouring galaxy of the Milky Way. Dist=180,000 ly.
M48 Hya 12+ stars in 7x binoculars. Triangular asterism near centre. Dist=1,990 ly.
γ Leporis Lep Visible with binoculars. Gold & white stars. Mags 3.6 & 6.2. Dist=30 ly. Sep=96.3".
2232 Mon A large scattered star cluster of 20 stars. Dist=1,300 ly.
2244 Mon Surrounded by the rather faint Rosette Nebula. Dist=5,540 ly.
M50 Mon Visible with binoculars. Telescope reveals individual stars. Dist=3,000 ly.
Cr 69 Ori Lambda Orionis Cluster. Dist=1,630 ly.
M42 Ori The Great Orion Nebula. Spectacular bright nebula. Best in telescope. Dist=1,300 light years.
Pup Semi-regular variable. Magnitude varies between 2.6 & 6.2 over 140.42 days.
M47 Pup Bright star cluster. 15+ stars in 7x binoculars. Dist=1,500 ly.
M46 Pup Dist=5,400 ly. Contains planetary NGC 2438 (Mag 11, d=65") - not associated.
2451 Pup 30+ stars in binoculars. The brightest star, χ Puppis, is red. Dist=850 ly.
2477 Pup Very rich but distant star cluster (4,200 ly). Resembles globular through binoculars.
47 Tucanae Tuc Spectacular object. Telescope will reveal stars. Near edge of SMC. Dist=15,000 ly.
SMC Tuc Small Magellanic Cloud. Companion galaxy to Milky Way. Requires dark sky. Dist=210,000 ly.
2547 Vel Fine open cluster visible through binoculars. Dist=1,300 ly.
IC 2391 Vel Omicron Velorum Cluster. Superb object for binoculars. Dist=450 ly.
M67 Cnc Contains 500+ stars mag 10 & fainter. One of the oldest clusters. Dist=2,350 ly.
3918 Cen The Blue Planetary. Visible in a small telescope as a round blue disk.
2070 Dor Tarantula Nebula. A bright nebula located in LMC. A star-forming region.
3242 Hya Ghost of Jupiter. Bright blue disk. Mag 11 central star. Dist=2,600 ly.
γ Leonis Leo Superb pair of golden-yellow giant stars. Mags 2.2 & 3.5. Orbit=600 years. Sep=4.4".
β Monocerotis Mon Triple star. Mags 4.6, 5.0 & 5.4. Requires telescope to view arc-shape. Sep=7.3".
2264 Mon Christmas Tree Cluster. Associated with the Cone Nebula. Dist=2,450 ly.
σ Orionis Ori Superb multiple star. 2 mag 7 stars one side, mag 9 star on other. Struve 761 triple in field.
k Puppis Pup Telescope easily shows two blue-white stars of almost equal brightness. Sep=9.9".
3132 Vel One of the brightest planetaries. Magnitude 10 central star. Dist=2,600 ly.
L2
SOUTHERN
HEMISPHERE
MARCH
2023
About the Celestial Objects
Listed on this page are several of the brighter, more interesting celestial objects
visible in the evening sky this month (refer to the monthly sky map). The objects are
grouped into three categories. Those that can be easily seen with the naked eye
(that is, without optical aid), those easily seen with binoculars, and those requiring
a telescope to be appreciated. Note, all of the objects (except single stars) will
appear more impressive when viewed through a telescope or very large
binoculars. They are grouped in this way to highlight objects that can be seen using
the optical equipment that may be available to the star gazer.
Tips for Observing the Night Sky
When observing the night sky, and in particular deep-sky objects such as star
clusters, nebulae, and galaxies, it’s always best to observe from a dark location.
Avoid direct light from street lights and other sources. If possible observe from a
dark location away from the light pollution that surrounds many of today’s large
cities.
You will see more stars after your eyes adapt to the darkness—usually about 10 to
20 minutes after you go outside. Also, if you need to use a torch to view the sky
map, cover the light bulb with red cellophane. This will preserve your dark vision.
Finally, even though the Moon is one of the most stunning objects to view
through a telescope, its light is so bright that it brightens the sky and makes many
of the fainter objects very difficult to see. So try to observe the evening sky on
moonless nights around either New Moon or Last Quarter.
Astronomical Glossary
Conjunction – An alignment of two celestial bodies such that they present the least
angular separation as viewed from Earth.
Constellation – A defined area of the sky containing a star pattern.
Diffuse Nebula – A cloud of gas illuminated by nearby stars.
Double Star – Two stars that appear close to each other in the sky; either linked by
gravity so that they orbit each other (binary star) or lying at different distances from
Earth (optical double). Apparent separation of stars is given in seconds of arc (").
Ecliptic – The path of the Sun’s center on the celestial sphere as seen from Earth.
Elongation – The angular separation of two celestial bodies. For Mercury and Venus
the greatest elongation occurs when they are at their most angular distance from the
Sun as viewed from Earth.
Galaxy – A mass of up to several billion stars held together by gravity.
Globular Star Cluster – A ball-shaped group of several thousand old stars.
Light Year (ly) – The distance a beam of light travels at 300,000 km/sec in one
year.
Magnitude – The brightness of a celestial object as it appears in the sky.
Open Star Cluster – A group of tens or hundreds of relatively young stars.
Opposition – When a celestial body is opposite the Sun in the sky.
Planetary Nebula – The remnants of a shell of gas blown off by a star.
Universal Time (UT) – A time system used by astronomers. Also known as Greenwich
Mean Time. Australian Eastern Standard Time (Sydney, Australia) is UT plus 10 hours.
CELESTIAL
OBJECTS
The Evening Sky Map (ISSN 1839-7735) Copyright © 2000–2023 Kym Thalassoudis. All Rights Reserved.