A gibbous moon appears near the bright planet Saturn on Saturday night. The two rise in the eastern sky after 9 p.m. The bright star Spica, in the zodiacal constellation Virgo, is nearby. The three celestial objects form a triangle. The moon is roughly 225,000 miles away, Saturn is 837 million miles away and Spica is over 250 light years away.

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

March 2 43 33 .19

March 3 46 33 .16

March 4 51 38 Trace

March 5 42 30 Trace

March 6 43 22 .00

March 7 48 26 .00

March 8 54 44 .00

Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 47º F.

Astronomers are focusing much attention on the red planet Mars these days. Tomorrow Mars is in opposition or at its closest approach to the earth in two years. The planet is 62.6 million miles away.

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

Feb. 24 57 31 .73*

Feb. 25 51 34 .35

Feb. 26 46 29 .00

Feb. 27 41 21 .00

Feb. 28 51 38 .00

Feb. 29 49 28 .00

Mar. 1 41 23 .86

*Melted precipitation

Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 44º F.

Temperature: Precip.

Day Max. Min. Inches.

Fº Fº

Feb. 17 47 39 .02

Feb. 18 48 33 .00

Feb. 19 47 34 .00

Feb. 20 44 26 .00

Feb. 21 41 26 .00

Feb. 22 50 37 .24

Feb. 23 54 41 .18

Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 48º F.

The crescent moon appears in our evening sky this weekend, and in the nights beyond. Tonight the moon appears underneath the bright planet Venus, and it gets even better tomorrow night when the two are closer.