March 2009 Monthly Sky Guide

That beauty, Venus continues to entertain, but by the end of the month, she'll be diminishing. Meanwhile, the ringed wonder, Saturn, takes the stage. Jupiter still shines in the morning, but if you look carefully, you'll catch a faint Mercury and Mars low in the sky. Don't forget Ceres, who is still showing itself.

Check out this map for the month of March, or create your own customized map with our Free Sky Maps tool.

Note: This map is for a median time and location and may have slight differences from your location and viewing time. Planets and moons shown on this map will have the highest probability of appearing in different locations.

Use this handy Sky Map Symbols Key to figure out what you should be looking for.

Check out our Astronomical Events Calendar to learn about other happenings in space and on Earth. Here is a sampling of highlights.

• 3 - 40th Anniversary (1969), Apollo 9 Launch
• 5 - Kepler Delta 2 Launch
• 8 - Daylight Saving - Set Clock Ahead 1 Hour (United States)
• 8 - Saturn At Opposition
• 12 - Uranus in conjunction with the sun
• 20 - Vernal Equinox, 11:44 UT
• 27 - Cassini, Titan Flyby
• 27 - Venus in Inferior Conjunction
• 30 - Mercury in superior conjunction

This month, the constellation Lupus can be seen high in the sky. Let's take a closer look at Lupus.

• The Wolf
• Genitive: Lupi
• Abbreviations: Lup, Lupi
• Right Ascension, (h): 15
• Declination, (deg): 45S

Born August 15, 1959 in Lincoln, IL, Commander Scott Altman was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in December 1994. He has flown on Shuttle missions STS-90 Neurolab (April 17 to May 3, 1998), STS-106 Atlantis (September 8-20, 2000) and STS-109 Columbia (March 1-12, 2002).

Check every day to learn what happened "This Day in History."

• 1: 1982 - Venera 13 landed on Venus
• 3: 1972 - Pioneer 10, USA Jupiter Flyby launched
• 11: 1960 - US Probe, Pioneer 5 Solar Monitor launched. Space probe is now in a solar orbit
• 14: 1879 - Albert Einstein born in Ulm, Württemberg, Germany.
• 31: 1727 - Sir Isaac Newton died in London, England.