Say Goodbye To Jupiter With A Beautiful Planetary Parade: The Night Sky This Week

Each Monday I pick out the northern hemisphere’s celestial highlights (mid-northern latitudes) for the week ahead, but be sure to check my main feed for more in-depth articles on stargazing, astronomy, eclipses and more.

What To See In The Night Sky This Week: March 27-April 2, 2023

So long, Jupiter, see you again soon. The solar system’s largest planet this week takes a bow and departs the post-sunset night sky for many months. It’s soon to disappear into the Sun’s glare, emerging in a few weeks in the pre-dawn sky, but before it does so it will this week appear very close to the solar system’s smallest planet, Mercury, in the western sky just after the Sun has disappeared behind the horizon. Venus will be close to both planets, with Mars high above.

Here’s everything you need to know about stargazing and the night sky this week:

Monday, March 27: A planetary parade

Have you got binoculars? If you have, get yourself somewhere high with a clear view of the western horizon to watch the sunset. After our star has sunk below the horizon, you should be able to pick out Jupiter and Mercury very close to the horizon. Above them will be a very bright planet, Venus, while high in the sky will be red Mars, flanked by an almost First Quarter Moon.

Tuesday, March 28: First Quarter Moon and Mars

Here’s another chance to see last night’s planetary parade, which this evening will look almost identical, save for the now slightly brighter First Quarter Moon having moved beyond Mars.

Thursday, March 30: Venus and Uranus conjunction

In the wake of this week’s planetary parade comes a conjunction of bright planet Venus and dim, distant Uranus. Look west after sunset tonight to see the two planets about a degree apart in the night sky. You’ll only see Uranus if you use binoculars.

Asterism of the week: the Big Dipper

The Big Dipper is a group of seven bright stars that form a distinctive pattern resembling a ladle or dipper. Its seven constituent stars make it the closest open cluster to the solar system.

“Spring up, fall down” is how to remember where to find the Big Dipper, one of the night sky’s most easily recognizable shapes. However, it’s not a constellation, but an asterism—a shape—that’s part of a much larger constellation called Ursa Major. “the Great Bear.”

Object of the week: Whirlpool galaxy

This spectacular spiral galaxy is about 31 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Canes Venatici. Also known as M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy can be seen using any small telescope, though you’ll need to be somewhere really dark.

Times and dates given apply to mid-northern latitudes. For the most accurate location-specific information consult online planetariums like Stellarium and The Sky Live. Check planet-rise/planet-set, sunrise/sunset and moonrise/moonset times for where you are.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.