5 hours Ago By Judy Isacoff
The constellation Leo the Lion strides into our evening skies as a harbinger of spring constellations. The Vernal Equinox occurs on March 20 this year. Equal hours of daylight and darkness are upon us.
Leo the Lion embodies the spring season in our imaginations, equal to the celebrity of Orion the Hunter in wintertime. Studying the star map, above, we might imagine the Lion pursuing the Hunter, soon to overcome the giant who is losing dominance in the celestial sphere. By superimposing the Winter Circle, detailed below, and the sky view, above, in our mind’s eye, we have a map with the identities of the alluring stars and planets at the change of season.
The Winter Circle (or Winter Hexagon) isn’t a constellation. It is an asterism, made of bright stars in the winter evening sky for the Northern Hemisphere (and summer sky for the Southern Hemisphere). It covers a large portion of the sky.
Chart via EarthSky. Published with permission.Brightest points of light in top diagram: Jupiter crystalline white high in the southwest early, setting in the west-northwest after midnight.
Mars appears as a burnished pink point of light beyond Leo the Lion mid-sky overhead at 9:15 p.m. Mars is underneath Castor and Pollux.
Locate the Big Dipper high overhead, its handle “arching to Arcturus,” a bright golden star.Spring Equinox sky view March 20 circa 11 p.m.
Vega, the Summer Triangle star, rises in the northeast close to 11 p.m., followed by Deneb and Altair after midnight.
Not shown. Copyright © 2025 Judy Isacoff.This diagram is included as a late-night constellation guide with the signature charm of illustrations by H.
A. Rey. Seek out his exciting astronomy books suitable for all ages: “Find the Constellations” and “The Stars – A new way to see them.
”There are only two times of the year when the Earth’s axis is tilted neither toward nor away from the sun, resulting in a “nearly” equal amount of daylight and darkness at all latitudes. These events are referred to as Equinoxes. The word equinox is derived from two Latin words: aequus (equal) and nox (night).
At the equator, the sun is directly overhead at noon on these two Equinoxes.Sunset is close to due west at 6:59 p.m.
today, the 15th. Venus, following sundown, will disappear very soon from the evening sky. The goddess planet sets in the west at 8:11 p.
m., visible close to the horizon.A postscript in celebration of the total lunar eclipse observed overnight Thursday, March 13, and Friday, March 14:Golden Ring at the lunar eclipse by Frank Lu, Arlington, Texas.
He states, “While waiting for totality, it occurred to me that a similar diamond ring effect may be possible. I overexposed and I think I’ve achieved the desired outcome. I’m calling this a golden ring.
” Photo courtesy of Frank Lu via EarthSky. Published with permission..
