Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1913-03-13
SKIES FOR MONTH OF MARCH
Total Eclipse of the Moon Comes
on the 22d.
Venus May BE Seen In Full Daylight
During the Month-wiiI he ut Its
brightest on the 10th-wbere
to Find It--Other Planets.

The month now beginning offers several
attractive features to students OF the
heavens. March Is always an interesting
month, because it is the time of the year
in which the sun moves northward at Its
most rapid rate, says Winslow Upton in
Boston Transcript, and In which il
crosses the equator and ushers in the
summer season for northern people. This
year In addition the planet Venus is at
It's greatest brightness, the planet Mer-
curry is in its most favorable position for
evening observation this year, and there
| is splendid total eclipse of the moon
which unfortunately cannot be seen from
New England
Venus reaches its greatest brlliancy On
the 18th. All during the month it may be
seen in full daylight when the sky is
clear. The difficulty is to know where to
look for 1t, for few have access to in
struments with graduated circles which
can be directed to specific point In the
sky The most available way for those
without such aids is to look in a specified
direction at the time the planet is In that
erection, and to look from point in the
| shadow Of building in order to reduce
| the glare of sunlight. Thus in this month
! Venus crosses the meridian, or IS due
| south, at the following times; LIST, 2A p.
J M; Sth, 2:3i p. m; 18th, 2:2i p. m; END,
2O9 m; 18Th. 40 p. m. 1t Is high in the
| sky: its distance from tho point directly
! overhead on those dates, as seen from
| this latitude. being LIST, 20 degrees; Sth,
d degrees; 18th, q degrees; end, % de-
| groes; 29th IS degrees. In order to find
| the planet, therefore, stand on the east
| side of a wall running north and south
! so rs to be in It's shadow at the time in
! dictated above and look at a height two
thirds of the way or a little more to the
zenith. \ field glass will help in the
! search.
If it is clear On the 18th the planet can
be found from the moon. which will pass
near it. After finding the moon, which
will be high in the south, look degrees
still higher, or about four diameters of
the moon toward the north, and the
! planet should be found.
The special brilliancv of Venus is due
to its nearness to tn, earth. 1t is about
| to go between the earth and the sun,
! when 1t will be nearest the earth. Al
/ that time it cannot be seen, for as It
shines by reflected light the illuminate |
/
from us. AS it approaches this position
its shape Is Il narrow crescent, becoming
narrower until the planet is LOST in tie
sunlight 1t is brightest &c days before
| 1t passes between earth and sun After
! passing the sun it will nc seen in the
morning before sunrise and will again
BE- at its brightest May 30.
The motion of Venus among the stars
Is this month eastward and northward
/ The sun is also moving apparently in a
! similar direction and at q greater rate,
80 that it is drawing near the planet.
Venus sets on the LIST and at $3.50 p m,
and on the 3lst at $40 p. m.
Many persons have never seen the
! planet Mercury because it Is so near the
sun in direction that it must be looked
for in daylight or in twilight. When
| farthest from the sun 1t can be seen with
out telescope either after sunset low in
the west or before sunset low in the east
! This month offers the most favorable op-
portunity OF the year. On any clear
evening between the LIST and 10th, look at
the west above the sunset point three
quarters Of an hour after sunset or at
about 6:2O p m. The planet should be
the LIST at 6:6 p. m. and on the 10th at
f:2o p. m. After the 10th It will move
rapidly nearer the sun and can be seen
for few evenings only. On the 10th the
moon, which will be a thin crescent, will
be about It. If the moon Is seen, look
between it and the horizon for Mercury.
y field glass will help.
The total eclipse of the moon comes in
the early morning OF the 22d. The moon
crosses the shadow of the earth nearly
centrally, moving southwark and east
ward 1t will be wholly in the shadow
for one hour and 81 minutes. All eclipses
of the moon can be seen from half the
earth, from any place where the moon
at the time is above the horizon We are
not in the favored region this time The
| moon reaches the edge of the shadow, and
the partial phase of the eclipse begins,
at 5:l3 p. m, when the moon is low in the
west 1t will set about half an hour
later before the moon is wholly in the
shadow. If it is clear in the west that
morning observers will notice that the
moon about five O'Clock is growing dark
on the upper left hand part of the disk.
At BIB, when the real eclipse begins, the
| moon will begin to lose its shape at the
dark upper edge. If seen as it sets it will
show but about one-half of its surface.
Observers farther west will enjoy the
whole spectacle. of which We may see
the beginning only.
The sun crosses the equator moving
horthward at 1910 Il. H., in the early
morning OF the 2lst The rapid motion
of the sun Is very evident if one can see
either the western or eastern horizon and
notes the different places in which it sets
or rises on successive days.
In this month Saturn and Neptune may
be seen in the evening Saturn IS high
in the southwest when first seen after
sunset, not far from the Pleiades. There
are two bright stars the planet and the
star Aldcbaran. which may be Confound.
ed with each other. The latter is In the
N-shaped group known from classical
times as the Hyades, and IS rudy
t Saturn is the right hand of the two stars
is not red, and is appreciably brighter
than Aldebaran. 1t sets on the LIST d,
l2;lO a. IN, and on the 3lst at 1925 D. IN.
! Neptune is in Gemini, not far from Cas-.
tor and Pollux More exactly, its pos.
ton on the LIST is right ascension hours
; 40 minutes, to which the telescope SHOULD
be pointed. 1t is visible until the early
? morning hours.
After midnight the planets Jupiter anl
r Mars rise, the former on the LIST at 3:E
a m, and on the 3lst at Las a. IN. 1t i,
in the constellation Sagittarius, near tn,
: Milk Dipper," and readily recognized BY