"The Beginning of Spring and the End of Winter Reflected in the Stars, and:
A Blue Moon Update"

Scheduled air date: 1999 Mar 22-28

This month marks the second, and last, "Blue" Moon of 1999.  A "Blue" Moon is the second Full Moon to fall within the same calendar month, an event which happens about once every 2.5 years.  Only about every 20 to 40 years do two "Blue" Moons fall within the same calendar year.

Now that Spring is here, the Winter constellations (e.g. Orion and Canis Major) can be seen dropping toward the Western horizon, while those of Spring (e.g. Leo) are climbing higher in the sky!  (Shown for mid-Northern latitudes at about 8:00 pm.)

If you wish to view illustrations for other episodes, please see our Star Gazer Illustrated directory.

Illustrations on this page were created using TheSky Astronomy Software, an advanced desktop planetarium program designed for Windows. Copyright © 1999-2006 by Software Bisque, Inc.