| April is the fourth month in the Gregorian calendar and consists of 30 days. The month of April is derived from the Etruscan name of the goddess Venus, ‘Apru’. |
The new moon for April occurs on Wednesday April 14th. This will make the weekends on April 10-11 and April 17-18 good weekends for dark sky observing.
The full Moon for this month occurs on April 28th and is known as the Full Flower Moon or the Full Corn Planting Moon.
Mercury starts this month by crossing from the constellation Pisces (The fish) into the constellation Aries (The Ram). Mercury will remain in Aries for the duration of the month.
| On April 1st, Venus and Mercury will be a mere 3°10’ from each other. |  |
 |
Mercury reaches its best evening observing on April 8, when it reaches its Greatest Eastern Elongation. On the 8th, Mercury will be 19°20’60” from the Sun. Note: The Red line is the orbit of Mercury and the green line is the Ecliptic. |
Mercury is observable in the evening hours of April until the 21st, when it disappears into the glare of the Sunset.
Venus is the Evening Star for the month of April. Venus begins the month in the constellation Aries (The Ram) and on April 19th, Mercury crosses into the constellation Taurus (The Bull).
| On April 1st, Venus and Mercury will be a mere 3°10’ from each other. | |
On April 24th, Venus will pass within 3°40’ of the asterism Pleiades (M45).
Mars is still in excellent position for the evening and late hours of April and is located in the constellation Cancer (The Crab) for the entire month. Mars sets around 2:45 am (PST) at the start of april and sets around 1:15am (PST) by the end of the month.
During April, Mars can be found in the general vicinity of the Beehive Cluster (M44). On April 16th, Mars will pass within 1°10’ of the Beehive Cluster.
Jupiter is observable in the morning hours of April in the constellation Aquarius (The Water Bearer). Jupiter rises at the start of April around 4:45 am (PST) and by the end of the month is rising around 3:10 am (PST).
Saturn is located in the constellation Virgo (The Maiden) until December 2012. Saturn is observable in the evening and very late hours of April. At the start of the month Saturn sets around 5:25 am (PST) and by the end of the month Saturn will set around 3:25 am (PST).
 |
On April 25th, Saturn rises within 10° of the waxing, gibbous moon. |
Uranus emerges from the glare of the sunrise around April 2nd. Uranus is observable in the morning hours before sunrise. At the beginning of April Uranus rises around 5:10 am (PST) and, by the end of April, Uranus rises around 3:20 am (PST). Uranus is located in the constellation Pisces (The Fish) until May 2012.
Located in the constellation Aquarius (The Water Bearer) until August 2010, Neptune is observable in the early morning hours of April. Neptune rises at the start of the month around 3:50 am (PST) and by the end of the month Neptune rises around 2:00 am (PST).
Pluto is located in the constellation Sagittarius (The Archer) until the year 2023. Pluto is observable from the very early morning hours of April. At the start of the month Pluto rises around 12:30 am (PST) and, by the end of the month, Pluto rises around 10:40 pm (PST).
4/1/2010 Mercury and Venus conjunction less than 3°10′ of each other
4/5/2010 Waning, gibbous Moon passes within 5° of Pluto
4/6/2010 Last Quarter Moon
4/8/2010 Mercury reaches its Greatest Eastern Elongation - Best Evening Views (19°20′46″)
4/9/2010 Waning, crescent Moon passes within 3°50′ of Neptune
4/11/2010 Waning, crescent Moon passes within 4°50′ of Jupiter
4/12/2010 Waning, crescent Moon passes within 5°15′ of Uranus
4/14/2010 New Moon
4/16/2010 Mars passes within 1°10′ of the Beehive cluster (M44)
4/21/2010 First Quarter Moon
4/24/2010 Venus passes less than 3°40′ of the asterism Pleiades (M45)
4/25/2010 Saturn rises within 10° of the waxing, crescent Moon.
4/28/2010 Full Flower Moon
Entries (RSS)
