The angle the ecliptic makes with the western horizon around sunset is maximised at this time of year, which gives us a good view of any of our Solar System neighbours positioned on the eastern side of the Sun.
These would typically be the inner planets, Venus and Mercury, but the early phases of the Moon count too.
More planet stargazing
The reason this happens is all of these objects tend to sit relatively near the ecliptic, so when it’s steeply angled with the horizon after sunset, so are they.
Mercury is on the other side of the Sun as of March 2026 and consequently a morning object.
Just before sunrise, the ecliptic makes a very shallow angle with the eastern horizon at this time of year.
Try to locate Mercury in the east before sunrise and you’ll see how a shallow ecliptic angle works: it doesn’t!
Mercury only just rises before the Sun and it’s very hard to spot. (Mars, also in the morning sky at present, suffers the same fate.)
Returning to the evening sky, where Venus is on show. It distances itself from the Sun throughout March and that steep ecliptic angle keeps it above the horizon for a decent time.
At the start of March, it set 70 minutes after sunset, but by the month’s end that increases to two hours.
The Moon is new on 19 March 2026, lining up with the Sun at 01:23 UT.
This is early enough in the day for it to have distanced itself enough to be seen after sunset as an ultra-thin waxing crescent. But be under no illusions, finding that fine sliver will be an observing challenge.
Sunset is at around 18:20 UT on this date (from the centre of the UK; the time will vary slightly depending on where you live), so we’ll start the clock at the time the Sun actually sets.
At this time, the Moon will be showing a phase of 0.7%, positioned approximately 8° above where the Sun goes down and 2° left of the Sun.
Now the tricky part: catching the Moon before it gets too low, but in a sky that has got dark enough to see it.
Please ensure the Sun has well and truly set before looking for the Moon, as accidentally viewing the Sun with your naked eye could damage your eyesight.
At around 20 minutes after sunset, the Moon sits 5° above the horizon. Venus should be visible at this time, 9° above and left of where the Moon should be; that’s a fraction smaller than the 10° width of your fist at arm’s length.
At 30 minutes after sunset, the Moon will be around 3.5° above the horizon, probably close to its visibility limit. If you do manage to view or photograph this Moon, well done.
You’ll have caught the Moon at just 17 hours old!
If you manage to observe or photograph Venus and the Moon, share your images with us by emailing contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com
