![]() In ancient Persia and now present-day Iran, the new year, called nowruz meaning ‘new day,’ began and still begins on March 21. Very many cultures in ancient times regarded their new year as the traditional fixed date for the vernal equinox. Somewhere around 2000 BCE, the Babylonian new year began on March 25. Beneath the angry skies, fragile as parchment but as irresistible as time, crocuses push their shafts up through the damp earth.” -Michael Judge in The Dance of Time: The Origins of the Calendar. On a night in late March the wind can blow with a force unfelt all winter. It can summon all the bluster of its namesake to convince huddled mortals that the power of winter, like that of any tyrant, is not soon or highly surrendered. For them, the middle of Winter doesn’t make sense to be chosen to host new year celebrations. ![]() Spring-a season of rebirth and the planting of new crops-is, for them, a logical time to start the new year. Now all of nature begins to be revived in earnest after its Winter hibernation.Īlthough for huge swathes of the global population the new year begins on the first day of January, new year celebrations are held on different dates for some societies and cultures.įor many people across the globe, the new year begins on the Spring equinox in the Northern hemisphere. From that day on in the northern hemisphere, each day thereafter we leave behind more of the dark of Winter as we receive a greater amount of the light and warmth of the sun. On the Spring equinox day every spot on the entire planet experiences an equal amount of time in the light and in the darkness. This special day, when the sun crosses the celestial equator, marks the middle point between the Winter solstice and the Summer solstice. While Venus opens a gap to Jupiter, it closes a wide separation to Mars, nearly 53° to its upper left.The Spring or vernal equinox 2022 is Sunday, March 20 at 11:33 a.m. The planet continues its descent into bright evening twilight to reappear in the morning sky during May after its solar conjunction. The Jovian Giant is bright, but unless there is a clear view of the western horizon, the planet is likely blocked by obstacles in the neighborhood. Jupiter is over 5° above the horizon and 18.5° to the lower right of Venus. Venus steps eastward about 1° each evening, passing Hamal, the brightest star in Aries, in a wide conjunction in a few evenings. Setting nearly three hours after the sun, Venus is nearly 25° above the horizon at this hour. Venus continues to widen a gap to Jupiter in the western sky at 45 minutes after sundown. Mercury is bright, but not high enough, yet, to see. The time interval increases five to six minutes each evening. Mercury is rapidly climbing into the evening sky, setting 15 minutes after the sun this evening. ![]() They revolve around a common center of mass in over 100 years.Ĭhart Caption – 2023, March 20: Venus and Jupiter are in the western sky after sundown. The star is about halfway from Vega to Altair, to the inside of the triangle.Īlbireo is a magnificent sight through a telescope where it separates into two stars, one golden and the other sapphire. It flies southward along the plane of the Milky Way toward the southern constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius. It is over 1,400 light years away and shines with an intensity of 48,000 suns, making it the 14 th brightest star for our northern hemisphere sky watchers.ĭeneb is the tail of Cygnus the Swan. In comparison, Deneb is one of the brightest stars in our region of the Milky Way. Altair, part of Aquila the Eagle, is nearly 17 light years away and is over 10 times brighter than the sun. Shining from a distance of about 25 lights, this blue-white star is nearly 50 times brighter than the sun. Vega is the third brightest star visible from mid-northern latitudes. ![]() The season name for the large triangle is because the shape makes its first appearance in the eastern evening sky at about the summer solstice. Each star belongs to its own constellation. Meanwhile, thirty minutes earlier, the Summer Triangle – Vega, Altair, and Deneb – is in the eastern sky. When the planet is higher in the sky and in a darker sky, it is easier to see. At 30 minutes before sunrise, it is nearly 5° above the horizon. Saturn is nearly ready to appear in the east-southeast before sunrise. Chart Caption – 2023, March 20: The Summer Triangle – Vega, Altair, and Deneb – is high in the eastern sky before sunrise. ![]()
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