SKYWATCH: March 2022
By Phillip Virden: Lake City, Colorado Amateur Astronomer, Cooperative Observer for 30+ years for National Weather Service, Dark Sky Coordinator for Lake Fork Valley Conservancy
Young Buck with a Snow Cap!
“Wake me when spring has sprung
When the cold is gone,
And skies no longer gray.
Rouse me with the cries of birds
A warm windblown my way.”
February Weather in Review
Average high temperature was 34 vs 37.8 historical average.
Highest recorded temperature was 46 on February 16th and 21st.
Average low temperature was 1.2 vs 3.1 historical average.
Lowest recorded temperature was -14 on March 3.
Average mean temperature was 17.6 vs 20.5 historical average.
Total precipitation was 1.06” vs .75” historical average
February was a surprise as temperatures fell below average and above average precipitation made up a little from a very dry January. For the water year (October 1 thru September 30), Lake City has a total of 4.44” vs the historical average of 4.81”.
A seven-inch snow from February 22-24 brought welcome scenes like this to Lake City
Mule deer doe searching for a daytime meal in February.
Orion will be saying goodbye by the end of March.
March and Early April Sky at Night
As winter constellations slowly move west, the constellations of spring start to appear in the east. Spring constellations include Leo, Virgo, Hercules, and Corona Borealis. Not far behind will be the bright star Vega in the Summer Triangle asterism and the constellation Scorpius.
March 8 & 9 – The crescent Moon will appear near the Pleiades and Aldebaran in the west at dusk.
March 15 and 19 – Try and spot the spring stars of Regulus and Spica in the east at nightfall.
March 18 – Full Moon
March 20 – Bright Venus is still up in the morning sky. Mars and Saturn are nearby.
March 20 – It will be Spring in the Northern Hemisphere! The Vernal equinox takes place at 9:33 a.m. MST.
March 23 – Antares will be by a waning crescent Moon at first light.
March 25 – Last quarter Moon
March 28 – Make sure and get up early and see the Moon, Venus, Mars, and Saturn at dawn in the east.
April 1 – New Moon
The spring constellation Leo reminds many cultures of a male Lion.
James Webb Update
Even though the first deep space images will not appear until this summer, the James Webb telescope continues to amaze us. After a nerve-racking 300+ maneuvers in December and January, the James Webb reached Lagrange 2 (an area approximately 1,000,000 miles from Earth). Then, in February, engineers painstakingly maneuvered Webb’s eighteen mirrors to begin imaging a chosen star (HD 84406 in the Ursa Major constellation) to bring things to a focus. Here are three images showing that procedure – from out of focus to alignment to bringing all the mirrors to a single point of clarity. More precision moves will be made this spring, but the initial results are very encouraging. The long-range plan will enable us to get that much closer to the clues of the very beginnings of the universe along with more close examination of exoplanets.
Simulation showing James Webb taking aim at star in Ursa Major. (NASA photo)
Eighteen mirrors show out of focus first images of one star. (NASA photo)
Engineers bring 18 mirrors into alignment. (NASA photo)
All efforts succeed into bringing into one focused star image! (NASA Photo)
Help protect Lake City’s beautiful starry night skies and TURN OFF YOUR LIGHTS TO TURN ON THE NIGHT!
Contact
If you have a question or would like to share information or your own photo, email Phillip Virden at starmanlakecity@msn.com