If you are not quite sure which of those stars is Mars, or where to look for swift Mercury, or your smart phone with Google Sky has a dead battery, then this month's What's Up podcast will help you out. It'll also show you why some Mars Oppositions are closer than others and provide some moon-near-planets or planets-near-planets guideposts.

This month I added some downloadable planet finding charts, a calendar, and a Mars Opposition graphic. You can find all these on the Solar System Exploration website here right below the video formats. http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-view.cfm?WUID=1124

Good dates to catch a planet (or two)

March 3 is Mars Opposition. It'll rise at sunset, set near dawn, and you'll have good views for many months!
March 5 Mercury below Jupiter and Venus (its highest altitude)
March 7 Moon and Mars
March 12 and 13, Venus passes Jupiter (watch them switch places over the next two weeks - Venus is the brighter of the two)
March 25 Moon next to Jupiter
March 26 Moon next to Venus

We'll have 2 telescopes out on busy Colorado Blvd, weather permitting tomorrow night (Saturday March 3, since we were weathered out last Friday night) Look for our man-sized telescopes somewhere along Colorado between Fair Oaks and Pasadena Avenues, where we find a curbside parking spot. Stop by and have a look at Jupiter, the moon, and Venus, and we'll point out Mars (at opposition) to you.

Mark your calendar for May 19 - we'll hold a public star party in Mojave National Preserve's Black Canyon Group Campsite on that night. Free camping, RSVP required. Dark skies - darker than you've ever seen, I bet. Let us know if you are interested, we'll get you the directions and who to call for a campsite RSVP - potluck dinner before dark, lots of rangers, interpretive staff attend. Great event!

This weekend is an interesting Mars in the Mojave Festival (March 9-12) at Death Valley National Park http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/events/2012/03-09-2012_mars-and-the-mojave.html
We may be there for a few of the events (hikes, great talks and panel discussions)

-- 
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://jane.whiteoaks.com/ http://twitter.com/jhjones 
What's Up For March: Amazing planetary views all month
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/whatsup-archive.cfm
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=JPLnews