This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2020 March 28 – April 4
~by Curt Nason
I regard Leo the Lion is as the signature constellation of spring, and it is not difficult to picture a lion in its distinctive pair of asterisms. A backwards question mark or a sickle represents its chest and mane, anchored by the bright star Regulus at its heart. To the east a triangle of stars forms the back leg and tail. Originally, a faint naked-eye cluster of stars represented a tuft at the end of the tail, but that now makes the tresses of Coma Berenices.
In mythology, the lion was a vicious creature that resided in the mountains of Nemea. Its hide was impenetrable to spears or arrows; the only thing sharp enough to penetrate the lion’s hide was its claws. The first of Hercules’s twelve labours was to kill this creature, which the legendary strongman did by strangulation. He then used the claws to cut off the lion’s hide for use as a shield. A friend of mine sees this constellation as a mouse, with the triangle as its head and the sickle as its tail. However, legends are not made by having a muscular demigod battle a mouse.
Amateur astronomers often point their telescopes at Leo for two trios of galaxies; one under the belly and the other by the back leg. Each trio can fit within the view through a wide-field eyepiece. Five of the six galaxies are Messier objects.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 7:05 am and sunset will occur at 7:43 pm, giving 12 hours, 38 minutes of daylight (7:11 am and 7:47 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 6:52 am and set at 7:52 pm, giving 13 hours of daylight (6:58 am and 7:56 pm in Saint John).
The crescent Moon is near Venus this Saturday and it is at first quarter phase on Wednesday. On Thursday evening the Moon approaches the Beehive star cluster. The highlight this week will be watching Venus approach the Pleiades, a star cluster we also call the Seven Sisters. They are a binocular view apart this weekend, with Venus passing in front of the cluster late in the week. Morning people can watch Mars slide below Saturn over the week, with bright Jupiter nearby to their upper right. Mercury rises about 40 minutes before sunrise and it can be seen with luck and some difficulty in binoculars.
All local public astronomy events are cancelled. However, you can catch the local Sunday Night Astronomy Show on YouTube at 8 pm this weekend, and watch previous shows.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason.