The Starry Heavens in March. 



BY PROFESSOR ERIC DOOLITTLE, OF THE 

 UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



In March, the first of our spring 

 months, the evening heavens show most 

 clearly the contrast between the winter 

 and the summer heavens. The whole 

 western half of the sphere above us is 



ged two-thirds of its length from below 

 the ground, the western end of the 

 great summer group Virgo is just be- 

 ginning to appear, while above this we 

 again see the reddish, brilliantly glow- 

 ing summer star, Arcturus, to which 

 the ancients ascribed a malign and 

 stormy influence. Between Arcturus 



Fig. 1. — The Constellations at 9 P. M., March 1. (If facing south, hold the map upright. If facing 

 west, hold West below. If facing cast, hold East below. If facing north, hold map inverted.) 



now covered with the bright winter 

 g-roups, while the winter branch of the 

 Milky Way is already west of the meri- 

 dian and is just beginning its slow but 

 steady withdrawal from our evening 

 heavens. 



In contrast, the whole eastern half 

 of the heavens is far fainter. In the 

 south the long Water Snake has drag- 



and the Lesser Lion the observer may 

 trace out the beautiful, filmy assem- 

 blage of stars known as the Maiden's 

 Hair. 



The interesting, but very faint, group 

 Cancer is exactly on the meridian in 

 the south ; to the left of this is the 

 bright Sickle, now apparently hanging 

 perfectly upright, with its handle down- 



