As Spring rolls around for everyone in the Northern Hemisphere, warmer weather also brings the chance to catch a glimpse at some awe-inspiring astronomy events from the comfort of your backyard.
From meteor showers to planetary alignments, here’s everything happening in April.
April 11: Planetary Alignment
On April 11, four planets (Mercury, Uranus, Venus, and Mars) will align in the night sky. Each will be visible shortly after sunset, with Mars and Venus being the brightest. The two may be harder to spot depending on conditions near you. A high-powered telescope or binoculars could come in handy. I also highly recommend using a star gazing app.
April 16-25: Lyrid Meteor Shower
One of the oldest known meteor showers, the Lyrids, will peak from April 21 to 22, NASA states on its Solar System page. With an average of 20 meteors/hour, the Lyrids are known for their fast and bright shooting stars that leave trails across the night sky. The best time to view the Lyrids is in the late evening of April 21 and into the early morning hours of April 22.
April 20: New Moon
Later this month, a New Moon, that has nothing to do with the drama between vampires, will occur in the darkness of the night sky. On April 20, the Moon will move between the Sun and Earth, creating a New Moon and marking a reset to the cycle of phases. Usually, the only time a New Moon is visible is during an eclipse when the Sun creates a ring of light, and boy, do I have great news.
April 20: Annular-total eclipse
An annular-total eclipse occurs when the Moon directly aligns with the Sun, but the apparent size of the Moon is smaller than that of the Sun. Instead of the Moon blocking out all of the Sun’s light (as in a total solar eclipse), the Sun will cast a ring around the Moon. During this event, the Moon will still cast a shadow on Earth. This is commonly referred to as the path of totality, and it’s from here that one can witness the rare event.
With so many exciting astronomy events lined up in April 2023, it’s the perfect month for skywatchers to get their telescopes out and gaze at the wonders of the universe.
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