March New Moon Spotting

Who will be the first to spot the March New Moon with naked eyes after sunset?

The Dark Moon will be in geocentric longitudinal conjunction with the Sun on 2008 MAR 07 at 17:14 UT. We’re in the months of the year surrounding the vernal equinox during which New Moon spotting is ideal for northern hemisphere observers. The current point in the Moon’s 18.6-year nodal cycle is also helpful. And being near perigee helps the Moon to separate from the Sun more quickly. However, this month the timing of the conjunction will make it virtually impossible for North Americans to spot the Moon aged less than 24 hours. But the New Moon in the Old Moon’s Arms should be a pretty sight on Saturday evening.

I’ve created a graphic previewing the western sky as viewed from Chicagoland 30 minutes after sunset on Saturday March 8, although it should well serve most North Americans. There will be no other planets or bright stars to serve as guides. Therefore the azimuth and altitude markings on the diagram will be particularly helpful. The graphic can be seen by clicking: http://www.curtrenz.com/astronomical.html

Photos or descriptions of the March New Moon would be welcome additions to this thread. Please include the date, time, time zone and location. Good Luck!

Below is a photo I took on 2007 MAY 17 of the Moon aged 30:42 hours, which is similar to the age it will be for North Americans during the evening of 2008 MAR 08. Mercury also appears in the picture.

There were clouds in the wrong area of the sky here near Chicago on Saturday evening. Apparently many North Americans had even worse weather.

The Dark Moon will next conjunct the Sun on 2008 APR 06 at 03:56 UT. That will present an opportunity for Europeans to sight a really young Moon later that evening. Even North Americans may spot a New Moon aged less than 24 hours. I might see it at less than 21 hours, which would break my personal record of 21:45.

The celestial geometry in April will be so ideal that the Moon’s crescent will appear to be hanging straight down in a U-shape like the Cheshire Cat’s smile for those of us near the latitude of Chicago. For those further south in the U.S. it will appear tilted the “wrong” way. Don’t be surprised if we hear from folks asking about the strange orientation of the Moon. A preview graphic is already on my website at: http://www.curtrenz.com/astronomical.html

Ed “katodog” posted his pictures of last night’s Moon at the Chicago Astronomer message board. He lives not far from me but had better luck seeing through the clouds. Here’s a link to the thread in which he posted his pictures: http://astronomer.proboards23.com/index.cgi?board=Lunar&action=display&thread=1204481222&page=1#1205026327