APRIL SKIES

Evening Planets:

Jupiter is well up in the SW sky as evening darkness falls. Each evening Jupiter is losing altitude and setting a bit earlier each night. At the beginning of the month Jupiter sets just after Midnight. By the end of the month Jupiter sets before Midnight. Jupiter manages to hold steady its brightness for the month.

Mars is also well up in the Southern sky as evening darkness falls. Unlike Jupiter, Mars is losing brightness fast as the month progresses. As the month progresses, the planet seems to dull down and its color not as noticeable. The planet will continue to move away from Earth and drop more in brightness for the next few months.

Morning Planets:

Venus is really the only easily visible morning planet. The planet is slowly gaining altitude as the month progresses. However, Venus’s position on the Eastern Horizon is still low. In fact, Venus’s altitude above the horizon is about half as high as it was during the recent evening showing. Venus does have a noticeable increase in brightness as the month progresses in the Eastern Dawn twilight.

Mercury appears in the East during this month. The planet puts on its worst morning showing of the year. The planet is extremely low on the Eastern horizon and stuck in the bright Dawn twilight. The planet barely rises about 45 minutes before Sunrise; making it extremely hard to be seen. In fact, Mercury is in such a poor position; it may not be seen at all during the month.

Saturn shares the same fate as Mercury. Saturn is also stuck in a low position on the Eastern horizon in the bright twilight. Although Saturn rises about a half an hour before Mercury, the planet may be harder to see than Mercury. This is due to the fact that Saturn is much dimmer than Mercury. Since Saturn and Mercury will most likely not be seen at all, this leaves Venus as the “De Facto” morning planet.

2 Apr Thick Crescent Moon upper right of Jupiter, Dusk

5 Apr Waxing Gibbous Moon, Mars and bright stars Castor and Pollux grouping, Evening

12 Apr Full Moon near bright star Spica, Evening

17 Apr Waning Gibbous Moon left of bright star Antares, Dawn

21-22 Apr Lyrid Meteor Shower

24 Apr Thin Crescent Moon right of Venus, Dawn

April’s Waning Gibbous Moon:

On the morning of Saturday 19 April, the Waning Gibbous Moon will be in a unique position. This Waning Gibbous Moon will be in its lowest sky position for that Phase in 18.61 years. That Moon will rise around 01:30 am and will remain very low on the horizon for the remainder of the Pre – Dawn night. During this time period, the Moon’s color and brightness may be affected by atmospheric conditions.

Lyrid Meteor Shower:

On the night of 21 – 22 April, the Lyrid Meteor Shower will happen. For most of that night, the sky will be Moon free. Around 3:30 am, the just past Last Quarter Moon will rise and will interfere with observing the meteors. The best chance to see a few Lyrid Meteors is between Midnight and 3:00 am. About 10 meteors per hour are predicted to be seen during that time frame. Most of the Lyrid’s meteors are often dim and hard to see. This weak meteor shower is not that favorable for our viewing area.

Gary T. Nowak

Vermont Astronomical Society

Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers