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What's in the sky tonight?
March 16, 2013

-Comet PANSTARRS now makes its way to the northern hemisphere - however depending on your location it will be difficult to spot today and tomorrow.

-Look west after sunset near the horizon. Binoculars may be needed to pick Comet PanSTARRS out of the bright sky. Look too early and the sky will be too bright; too late and the comet will be too low. On the altitude scale at left, 10° is about the width of your fist held at arm's length.

-This diagram is drawn for a viewer near 40° north latitude (Denver, New York, Madrid) 30 minutes after sunset. If you're south of there, the comet will be a little higher above your horizon early in the month than shown here. North of 40°, it will be a little lower early in March than shown here.

-After dusk, the waxing Moon shines in the west with the Pleiades to its upper right and Jupiter and Aldebaran farther to its upper left, as shown here.

-Watch the Moon wax to, and through, the evening Jupiter group. (Drawn for the middle of North America. European observers: move each Moon symbol a quarter of the way toward the one for the previous date. The Moon is shown three times its actual size.)

Astro Picture of the Day:
March 16, 2013

Source:
Still looking for that comet? Comet PanSTARRS (C/2011 L4) naked-eye appearance in the northern hemisphere is described by successful comet spotters as a dim star with faint a tail. If you want to catch it the next few days could be your best bet. Start looking low and almost due west about 45 minutes after sunset. Of course, clear skies and a pair of binoculars should help a lot. Sky photographer Jean-Luc Dauvergne found suitable weather and western horizon for this comet and crescent Moon portrait after a road trip on March 13. Seeing PanSTARRS for the first time, he recorded the beautiful twilight scene with a telephoto lens near historical Alesia in France.