February is over, and an early spring has been predicted. As the snow begins to melt and temperatures finally rise, our night sky will have plenty to keep us interested. From the March equinox to the implication of a Paschal Full Moon, here are some of March’s most anticipated astronomical phenomena and rocket launches.
The 2024 March equinox will be occurring on March 19 at 11:06 PM (Eastern Time). This day will mark the beginning of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere and the autumn season in the Southern Hemisphere. The spring equinox takes place each year on March 20 or 21, with the exception of during leap years, where those in or further west than the Eastern Time Zone will experience it on March 19. The date of the spring equinox also impacts the name of the month’s full moon, as mentioned in the next paragraph.
The Soyuz MS-25 mission will be launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on March 21. A swap of crew members will be taking place on this mission to satisfy the Soyuz-Dragon crew requirement of having at least one American and Russian member on the International Space Station at any given moment. The launching crew includes Commander Oleg Novitsky, former Lieutenant Colonel with over 700 hours of flight time logged with the Russian Air Force; flight engineer and spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya, who will be becoming the first Belarusian woman in space on this mission; and flight engineer Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, an American chemist and astronaut who will spend six months on the station. Novitsky and Vasilevskaya will both spend approximately twelve days on the ISS as part of the 21st ISS visiting expedition and will return with NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara on the Soyuz spacecraft shortly after arriving. Dyson will return to Earth in late September 2024 along with two other landing crew members- Commander Oleg Kononenko, Russian cosmonaut who recently broke the record for the longest amount of time spent in space; and flight engineer Nikolai Chub, Russian cosmonaut and economist who has been on the International Space Station with Kononeko since September 2023.
(The launching crew of the Soyuz MS-25 mission. From left to right: flight engineer Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, Commander Oleg Novitsky, and flight engineer/spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya. Image Credit: Andrey Shelepin/GCTC/NASA)
The full moon of March, or the Worm Moon, will be visible on March 25. It was given its name due to March being the month where earthworms begin to reappear as the ground softens and snow melts. The Worm Moon goes by many different names, including the Sugar Moon, the Eagle Moon, the Goode Moon, and the Sore Eyes Moon (due to the reflection of sunlight off of the melting snow during this time of year). Typically, if the full moon of March occurs before the spring equinox (making it the last full moon of winter), it is known as the Lenten Moon. On the other hand, if it occurs after the spring equinox (making it the first full moon of spring), it is known as the Paschal Moon. Since the Worm Moon of 2024 is taking place after the spring equinox on March 19, it is the first full moon of the spring season and is known as the Paschal Moon. This plays a large role in determining the date of Easter each year- Easter Sunday is always observed on the first Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon, which is why it changes slightly year-to-year.
A Penumbral Lunar Eclipse will be taking place on March 25, and is predicted to be visible in both North and South America, much of Europe, much of Australia, and North and South Asia. The maximum stage of this eclipse will take place at 3:12 AM (Eastern Time), though the overall duration will be over four years, beginning at 12:53 AM (Eastern Time). There will be two lunar eclipses in 2024- this penumbral lunar eclipse in March, and a partial lunar eclipse between September 17 and 18. This lunar eclipse will be very slight as the moon moves through the outermost edge of the shadow of the Earth.
Whether you choose to try your best to observe the rising of the interesting Paschal Moon on March 25 or celebrate the beginning of the spring season on March 19, this month will provide all astronomy lovers with many chances to admire the sky above.
VERY INTERESTING AND INFORMATIVE – THANK YOU