With the later onset of twilight, the opening of the observatory on Friday evenings in April is pushed back by one hour to 21:00 - provided the sky remains cloud-free.

SUN AND MOON

On the first of the month, the central star rises in Zweibrücken at 7:04 am and sets at 8:05 pm. The length of the day is 13 hours 1 minute and increases further to 14 hours 43 minutes at the end of the month. The full moon on 13.04. will affect the view of fainter objects.

From 10 p.m. on April 1, the waxing moon will appear to pass through the Pleiades above the western horizon. The Pleiades can be seen as a small collection of several stars or as a nebulous patch. Here is the view of the sky at around 22:30.

PLANETS

Almost all the planets have receded from the night sky.

Mercury almost reaches its maximum possible angular distance from the sun at 27.33 degrees on April 21. However, as it is 12 degrees south of the zodiac, it still remains too low for morning visibility.

Venus has begun its morning star period; in the telescope it can be seen as a thin crescent. On the 15th of the month, it crosses the horizon in Zweibrücken at 5:16 am.

The heyday of the Mars is over, it is no longer prominent in the evening sky. In the telescope it appears as a small disk.

Jupiter continues to dominate the evening sky. Its setting times are getting earlier and earlier, and its evening visibility is getting shorter and shorter as the days get longer and longer. On the 15th of the month it sets at 0:08 am, the end of civil twilight is not until 9:38 pm.

Saturn was recently in conjunction with (apparently near) the Sun. It cannot yet assert itself in the morning sky.

Uranus is no longer a worthwhile object of observation, Neptune stays in the daytime sky.

STARRY SKY

The spring constellations are now high in the sky. Only in the west are the remains of the winter constellations still visible. Above us you can see the spring triangle, which consists of the bright stars Arcturus in Ursa Major, Spica in Virgo and Regulus in Leo.

Deep in the South are the inconspicuous constellations of the Cup and the Raven and, to the south and west, the constellation of the Water Snake. In Greek mythology, Apollo, son of Zeus, once sent a raven with a cup to fetch water from a spring for an offering to his father. On the way, the raven was distracted by a fig tree whose fruit was not yet ripe. The black bird waited until the fruit was edible, ate it and only then completed his task. As an excuse for his delay, the raven bird grabbed a water snake and claimed that it had denied him access to the spring. Apollo saw through the lie and sent the raven, the cup and the water snake to heaven as a warning.

In the East another Greek hero, the summer constellation of Hercules, is already making his presence felt.

High on the northern night sky is home to the striking constellation of the Great Bear.

The following sky view is valid for April 1 at midnight, April 15 at 11 p.m. and April 30 at 10 p.m.

Due to the ever-later sunsets, the observatory only opens on Friday evenings in March from 7 pm. Provided the night sky is clear, of course.

Sun and moon

March has some astronomical highlights in store for us, including a partial lunar eclipse in our latitudes in the morning hours of March 14.

Entry into the penumbra occurs at 4:56 a.m., but is difficult to observe due to the small difference in brightness. The beginning of the partial phase is much more visible at 6:09 a.m. - at this time, however, the moon is only just under 6 degrees above the western horizon. In Zweibrücken, it sets at 6:55 am, while the total eclipse would not begin until 7:26 am.
Animation from the observatory hill.

Created with Stellarium 23.3

On Saturday, March 29, there will be a partial solar eclipse that will be visible for its entire duration.

To mark the occasion, the observatory will open at 10 a.m. on this day if the sky is clear. In Zweibrücken, the partial phase begins at 11:18 and ends at 12:59.
The following animation of the course of the solar eclipse was also created with Stellarium 23.3

Planets

Mercury offers passable visibility in the western evening sky in the first half of the month despite its perihelion (closest approach to the sun) on March 4.

Venus has had its best time as an evening star. It will remain visible until mid-March, possibly until the 20th of the month with bright optics. Towards the end of the month, it already appears in the morning sky.

Mars loses significantly in brightness over the course of the month, but remains high in the evening sky. A slight decrease in its brightness can be seen in the telescope due to the phase of solar illumination - by the end of the month it will shrink to around 90 % relative to its opposition position in January. Like the Moon, Mars also shows phases as we observe it from different angles from Earth. However, these phases are much less pronounced for Mars than for the Moon or inner planets such as Venus and Mercury.

Jupiter dominates the first half of the night and remains a conspicuous companion in the night sky.

Saturn is in the daytime sky together with the sun, it can no longer be observed.

Uranus and Neptune no longer play a significant role for observations. Uranus shortens its evening visibility considerably, while Neptune stays in the daytime sky and remains invisible.

Starry sky

The twinkling stars of the winter sky have already moved far beyond sunset. West but still remain striking eye-catchers in the night sky. At the same time, the transition to the spring sky is in full swing.

A look at North shows the circumpolar constellations that are visible all year round. High in the north-east is the Great Bear with the well-known constellation of the Big Dipper. Nearby is the Little Bear with the Pole Star, around which the inconspicuous constellation of the Dragon meanders. Cassiopeia and Cepheus can be seen in the northwest. A bright star can be observed from an elevated position just above the horizon: Deneb, the main star of the summer constellation Swan.

On Western sky you can still see some autumn constellations after sunset, including Andromeda.

In the South dominated by the impressive winter hexagon with its striking winter constellations: Gemini, Auriga and Taurus. Particularly striking in Taurus is the reddish Aldebaran, the "Eye of Taurus", which is sometimes mistaken for Mars. Among the Inuit, Aldebaran is called Nanurjuk and symbolizes a polar bear that was set upon by a group of dogs - represented by the Hyades, an open star cluster. In Inuit mythology, the hunters who want to hunt down the polar bear are the three prominent belt stars of Orion and the bright Rigel. Orion is also seen as a sky hunter in Greek mythology, followed by the constellations of the Great and Little Dog, the latter with Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. The most prominent object in Orion is the well-known Orion Nebula, an active star-forming region. Some of its young stars, including the Trapezium stars, reach surface temperatures of around 50,000 Kelvin.

On Eastern sky the spring constellation of Leo gradually rises, followed by Virgo in the second half of the night. However, these constellations only unfold their full splendor in spring.

The following graphic shows the view of the sky on March 15 at 10 pm.

As already reported several times in the press and here mentioned above, we can expect another planetary constellation in the evening sky towards the end of the month, around February 28. This will involve the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, which are visible to the naked eye, as well as Uranus and Neptune, which are only visible with telescopes/binoculars.
However, this constellation requires a differentiated view: Mercury and Saturn are close to the horizon and are only visible under optimal conditions. Under average weather conditions, Mars, Jupiter and Venus in particular remain easy to observe. Below is a representation of the sky view on February 28 at 18:30.

Sun and moon

The days are getting considerably longer again. On the first day of the month, the sun is 9 hours 33 minutes above the horizon in Zweibrücken, on the last day it is already 11 hours 3 minutes
Right at the beginning of the month, on February 1, you can see the narrow, waxing crescent moon below Venus.
The full moon will affect the observation of fainter objects around the days of February 12.

Planets

Mercury can already be seen on the western horizon towards the end of the month under good conditions. Visibility will improve further at the beginning of March.

Reached mid-February Venus Its crescent shape is clearly visible in the telescope.

The red planet Mars has just passed its opposition position and is still prominent in the evening sky. In the telescope, its apparent diameter will decrease to a good 10 arc seconds by the end of the month.

Jupiter can be found in the southwest in the first half of the night; it has completed its opposition period. You can still enjoy the play of its four large moons in smaller telescopes within a few hours.

Saturn is approaching the horizon, towards the end of the month it will be difficult to spot it in the evening sky. It will not appear in the morning sky again until the end of May.

Uranus and Neptune are no longer interesting objects to observe. Neptune leaves the celestial stage towards the end of the month.

Starry sky

The twinkling stars of the winter sky have already moved in the direction of the sunset. West shifted, but are still prominent in the night sky.

High about us are Gemini and the inconspicuous constellation of Cancer with its open star cluster, the Praesepe (Latin for The Crib). Far away from disturbing lights, this can already be recognized as a faint patch of nebulosity. Its true beauty can be glimpsed with the aid of binoculars. In Greek mythology, the crab plays a minor role. According to one version, it is said to have assisted the many-headed Hydra in her confrontation with Hercules. However, both were ultimately defeated by the ancient hero. The crab was then transferred to heaven by Hera, wife of Zeus, who was not on good terms with Hercules.

In the East the spring constellations are already attracting attention. Leo, with its main star Regulus, has already risen completely above the horizon.

Still deep in the South the bright star Sirius can still be seen in the Great Dog. Due to its low horizon height, a twinkling with color changes and dancing can often be observed, which is caused by refraction of the light on the flatter and therefore longer path through the Earth's atmosphere.

The following graphic shows the view of the sky on February 15 at 10 pm.