JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Solar System .

What's Up - March 2021

Mar 03, 2021

What are some skywatching highlights in March 2021? Look for Mars close to the Pleiades in the first couple of weeks of March. Then wake up early to observe the giant planets Jupiter and Saturn, which return as morning planets this month.

Additional information about topics covered in this episode of What's Up, along with still images from the video, and the video transcript, are available at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/whats-up-skywatching-tips-from-nasa.


Transcript:

What's Up for March? Mars and friends in the evening, and a brilliant pair of planets returns...

In the first week or so of March, you'll find Mars near the Pleiades star cluster high in the west in the few hours after sunset. NASA's Perseverance rover successfully landed on Mars on February 18th! And in addition to this latest surface explorer, orbiters from two other nations arrived in orbit around the Red Planet last month, making 2021 a truly international year of Mars exploration.

You may also notice a couple of other reddish objects forming a line with Mars – that is, the stars Aldebaran, which forms the angry eye of Taurus the bull, and Betelgeuse, the shoulder of Orion. And speaking of Betelgeuse, astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and other observatories have determined the cause of the star's dimming last year was likely due to a cloud of dust ejected by the aging red giant. And while scientists think the star has moved into burning helium, instead of hydrogen, in its core, they think it's unlikely to explode in a supernova anytime soon.

Hopefully you managed to catch a glimpse of Jupiter and Saturn as they came ultra-close in their Great Conjunction in December. Not long after this, the two planets left the evening sky as they passed behind the Sun as seen from Earth. Well now the pair is back, this time as morning planets. In the second half of March, Jupiter and Saturn re-emerge as a bright pair in the pre-dawn sky. They won't be as close as in December, but they're still an absolute joy to observe. So if you're up early, grab a warm drink step outside to commune with the largest planets in our solar system.

Here are the phases of the Moon for March. You can catch up on all of NASA's missions to explore the solar system and beyond at nasa.gov. I'm Preston Dyches from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that's What's Up for this month.

Related Pages

News .

NASA’s Mars Helicopter to Make First Flight Attempt

News .

NASA’s Odyssey Orbiter Marks 20 Historic Years of Mapping Mars

News .

Probing for Life in the Icy Crusts of Ocean Worlds

News .

NASA Invites Public to Take Flight With Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

News .

NASA’s First Weather Report From Jezero Crater on Mars

News .

NASA’s Mars Helicopter Survives First Cold Martian Night on Its Own

Image .

Goldstone Radar Observations of Asteroid 2001 FO32

News .

Sensors Collect Crucial Data on Mars Landings With Arrival of Perseverance

News .

NASA’s InSight Detects Two Sizable Quakes on Mars

News .

NASA’s Europa Clipper Builds Hardware, Moves Toward Assembly

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors of JPL
JPL History
Documentary Series
Virtual Tour
Annual Reports
Missions
All
Current
Past
Future
News
All
Earth
Mars
Solar System
Universe
Technology
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Infographics
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Engage
JPL and the Community
Lecture Series
Public Tours
Events
Team Competitions
JPL Speakers Bureau
Topics
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Stars and Galaxies
Exoplanets
Technology
JPL Life
For Media
Contacts and Information
Press Kits
More
Asteroid Watch
Robotics at JPL
Subscribe to Newsletter
Universe Newsletter
Social Media
RSS
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Manager: Veronica McGregor
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Randal Jackson, Naomi Hartono