This month we are treated to occultations of Aldebaran and Jupiter by Moon and to a penumbral eclipse of Moon. The occultation of Aldebaran should be easy to view with both objects well up in the sky. The occultation of Jupiter takes place a little before sunrise and may be a little difficult to see. The penumbral lunar eclipse, which reaches a maximum late in the evening, will not be very noticeable, but is worth looking for if it is clear.
These three events are nicely spaced through the month for our viewing pleasure. The first will be easy to view if the sky is clear on March 4. On that evening Moon will pass in front of the 1st magnitude star Aldebaran, the Eye of Taurus the Bull. In Morgantown, Aldebaran will disappear behind the dark limb of Moon a few seconds before 7:24 p.m. Sunset on March 4 is at 6:15 p.m. so the sky is nearly as dark as it can be. You should be able to see the beginning of the occultation easily with your naked eye because Aldebaran is so bright and it will disappear at the dark limb. It will be even more spectacular through binoculars or a telescope. The star will reappear at the bright limb just a few seconds before 8:23 p.m. in Morgantown, but you will probably need binoculars or a telescope since Moon's western limb is so bright then.
An article in the March, 1998, issue of Sky & Telescope describes methods for timing the occultation using a camcorder. The International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA) is interested in receiving and analyzing video tapes of the occultation from observers who have accurately interpolated their geographical location from USGS topographic maps. Accurate timings can be obtained by recording a minute or so of CNN a few minutes before the occultation begins, taping the star's disappearance while the camcorder continues to run, and taping a minute or so of CNN after Aldebaran has disappeared. In addition to the magazine, more information about this occultation is available at http://www.skypub.com/occults/occults.html, Sky & Telescope's Web site, and information about IOTA and this occultation are available on IOTA's Web site at http://www.sky.net/~robinson/iotandx.htm.
The penumbral lunar eclipse takes place at full moon on March 12. Just before 9:14 p.m. Moon begins to move into the penumbra of Earth's shadow. This is the outer portion of the shadow in which not all of Sun's light is blocked by Earth. Observers near Moon's south pole would witness a partial eclipse of Sun. Maximum eclipse occurs at 11:20 p.m. when 74% of Moon's diameter is immersed in the penumbra. The south edge of Moon will be a little more than 800 miles from the dark inner part of the shadow -- the umbra -- where Sun's entire disk is blocked. You need not spend a lot of time viewing this eclipse. If skies are clear around 11:20 p.m. take a look at Moon and see if you can notice any subtle shading as you compare the brightness near the top of Moon to the brightness near its bottom.
Jupiter's occultation takes place on March 26. Jupiter rises at 5:23 a.m. that morning behind the waning crescent Moon. The planet reappears from behind Moon's dark limb at 5:43 a.m. in Morgantown. You will have to find a clear eastern horizon because Jupiter will be only a little more than 3 degrees above a sea horizon then. Our sunrise that morning is 6:14 a.m. so the sky will be pretty bright, but Jupiter's magnitude then is -2.0, so you have a good chance of seeing Jupiter reappear if you use a telescope or perhaps even binoculars.
The Astronomy Club of WVU invites you to join them to view any of these events. You can contact me at 293-3422 or the Club's president, Mike Blackwood, at 292-9463, for more information about the Club. Its next meeting is at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3, in 425 Hodges Hall.