Sydney Observatory night sky map A map for each month of the year, to help you learn about the night sky

March 2014www.sydneyobservatory.com.au

This star chart shows the stars and constellations visible in the night sky for Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and Adelaide for March 2014 at about 9pm (summer time) and at about 8pm (local standard time) for Perth and Brisbane. For Darwin and similar locations the chart will still apply, but some stars will be lost off the southern edge while extra stars will be visible to the north. Stars down to a brightness or magnitude limit of 4.5 are shown. To use this chart, rotate it so that the direction you are facing (north, south, east or west) is shown at the bottom. The centre of the chart represents the point directly above your head, called the zenith point, and the outer circular edge represents the horizon.

South Celestial Pole

LMC

SMC

ANTLIA

APUS

ARA

ARIES

AURIGA

CAELUM

CANCER

CANIS MAJOR

CANIS MINOR

CARINA

CENTAURUS

CETUS

CHAMAELEON

CIRCINUS

COLUMBA

COMA BERENICES

CORVUS

CRATER

CRUX

DORADO

ERIDANUS

FORNAX

GEMINI

GRUS

HOROLOGIUM

HYDRA

HYDRUS

INDUS

LEO

LEO MINOR

LEPUS

LUPUS

LYNX

MENSA

MONOCEROS

MUSCA

NORMA

OCTANS

ORION

PAVO

PERSEUS

PHOENIX

PICTOR

PISCIS AUSTRINUS

PUPPIS

PYXIS

RETICULUM

SCORPIUS

SCULPTOR

SEXTANS

TAURUS

TRIANGULUM AUSTRALE

TUCANA

URSA MAJOR

VELA

VIRGO

VOLANS

Achernar

Adhara

Aldebaran

Alpha Centauri

Antares

Betelgeuse

Canopus

Capella

Hadar

Mimosa

Pollux

Procyon

Regulus

Rigel

Sirius

Spica

Zubenelgenubi

North

NE

Ea

st

SE

South

SWW

est

NW

The best time to view the Moon with a small telescope or binoculars is a few days either side of the first quarter Moon on the 9th. Jupiter can be seen towards the north during the evening and will be near the Moon on the 10th. The Autumn Equinox occurs on the 21st. The word equinox is Latin meaning equal night, and is one of two days (usually 21st March and 21st September) when the Sun spends an equal amount of time above and below the horizon for every place on Earth. Constellations visible this month include Canis Major (the Great Dog), Orion (the Hunter), Gemini (the Twins) and Leo (the Lion). Crux (the Southern Cross) is low in the south-east and is located just above the two bright Pointer stars.

Sydney Observatory, with a magnificent view overlooking Sydney Harbour, is open 10am to 5pm daily – except closed Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, and open 10am to noon on 31st December. Open Monday to Saturday for night telescope sessions (planetarium session if cloudy) and 3D movies about the Universe. Bookings are essential for night programs.

For more information, check the website at www.sydneyobservatory.com or call (02) 9921 3485. Sydney Observatory is at 1003 Upper Fort Street, Observatory Hill, in the historic Rocks area of Sydney.

Sydney Observatory is part of the Powerhouse Museum. The Sydney Observatory night sky map is prepared by Dr M Anderson using the software TheSky. © 2014 Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney.

Star Brightness Zero or brighter 1st magnitude 2nd 3rd

4th

Moon Phase New Moon: 01st

First quarter: 09th Full Moon: 17th

Last quarter: 24th New Moon: 31st

Chart Key Bright star Faint star Ecliptic Milky Way Celestial Equator Planet LMC or Large Magellanic Cloud SMC or Small Magellanic Cloud

P

SOUTHERN CROSS

POINTERS

FALSE CROSS

ERIDANUS

M42

Gemini (the Twins)

Canis Major (the Great Dog)

Orion (the Hunter)

Sirius

Leo (the Lion)

ORION’S BELTSEXTANS

HYDRA

CANIS MINOR

Gamma Crucis Beta Crucis

Canopus

CORVUS

Eta Carina

PJupiter

First Quarter Moon on 9th

P Mars