The twenty-seventh in a series of Moon River StarWatches will be held on Saturday, March 22nd, 2025, from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. at Heritage Port in downtown Wheeling.This family-friendly event is held on the fourth Saturday of each month. Remember to dress warmly (jacket with hood, extra socks, gloves, scarf, etc.) for the season after all, it is still late March. The forecast is for cold - above freezing, some clouds, little chance for rain or snow. Be prepared to have more conversations about the wonders of the Universe above our heads and hidden by clouds than “Telescopically” seeing them.We will have a telescope just in case the local weather cooperates with the StarWatch.This month’s Moon River StarWatch event will not include a view of the Earth’s Planetary-sized Moon in the sky during the program. Additionally, the planets Mercury, Venus, and Saturn will set locally just after Earth’s star, Sol settles into the western horizon 23 minutes prior to the start of the StarWatch. The only Light Pollution we will have to deal with is the temporary twilight glow of the setting Sun and the Human-made glares and glows from both sides of the Ohio River.If we get clear spots between the clouds, we will telescopically observe the bright white Planet Jupiter and his distinct cloud bands and four planetary-sized moons: Ganymede, Io, Europa, and Callisto found high in the southwestern sky. The other bright planet to round out our StarWatch will be the Planet Mars, even higher in the south sky. A casual glance at Mars, easily shows that the nickname “The Red Planet” is misplaced. Look for dark Martian features and polar caps if the sky is steady.Our Light-Polluted skies in downtown Wheeling will make the dim planet Uranus and many Deep Space Objects hard to find – but we will search for the Pleiades Star Cluster, The Great Nebula in Orion, some bright Double Stars and a few bright Star Clusters.If you have your own telescope, bring it along – the more the merrier.Meet at the Wheeling Walking Trail at Wheeling’s Waterfront next to the Walter Reuther statue, just south of the “Wooden Swing”, and west of the splash area - near the Wheeling Arena. Find us at Latitude 40° 03’ 55.5” North and Longitude 80° 43’ 30.2” West.In case of clouds or light misting rain, amateur astronomers will still be on hand to discuss and answer your astronomically related questions.Moon River StarWatches are sponsored by SMART-Center, SMART Centre Market, Near Earth Object Foundation, and funded in part with a partnership grant with Wheeling National Heritage Corporation. Read the full article
