The Planets
Planet Data For March
Click on any planet below to go straight to its section.
The table below shows key data for the planets this month, including rise, transit and set times, as well as magnitude, apparent size and position data (right ascension and declination).
Events that occur when the sun is below the horizon are shown with a black background and white text. All other events happen when the sun is in the sky and other for not visible for observation.
March 2025 reveals good viewing for some of the planets, but Mercury, Venus, Saturn, and Neptune all reach a conjunction this month and so are hard or impossible to observe. Mars, Jupiter and Neptune offer the best of the solar system’s views as we come to the end of winter.
All of the images below can be opened full screen in a new tab by clicking on them
Mercury
05th March
After a month of note being able to see it, Mercury pulls away from the sun and becomes visible in the evening after sunset.
15th March
This is the view at 8pm with Mercury 7° over the western horizon after the sun has set.
25th March
Mercury passed in front of the sun yesterday and so is now a morning planet but it’s too close to our star to be seen.
After a poor viewing month for Mercury in Feb, we’re going to be treated to short glimpses of it this month.
As March opens, we can see it reach greatest elongation and so it’ll be visible after sunset for ten days or so. Then, quickly, Mercury passes in front of the sun on the 24th before emerging as a decently-visible morning planet by the month’s end.
Venus
05th March
At 7:30 in the evening, Venus is easily visible in the west.
15th March
Ten days later and the Venus-Sun distance has closed considerably, putting Venus lower towards the horizon after sunset.
25th March
Our brightest planet passed in front of the sun on the 23rd and is now a morning planet. This view before sunrise improves from now.
Venus, like Mercury, passes in front of the sun later in March, so it begins the month as an evening planet and ends it as a morning one. Consequently, its best views are to be had in the first and last weeks of March.
Mars
05th March
At 8pm, Mars is practically overhead and shining brightly in Gemini.
15th March
Very little has changed – other than the clocks – ten days later. This is now the view at 9pm.
25th March
Still at 9pm, Mars can be seen almost at the zenith and not far from the twins Castor and Pollux.
March is the last really good month for Mars viewing because its disc is rapidly shrinking as our respective orbits move us further apart. Shrinking from ten to eight arcseconds means a reduction in disc size of 20% this month and, worse than that, a diminishing view of its surface.
However, it’s going to keep getting smaller so take the time this month to enjoy the almost-overhead nature of the Red Planet.
Jupiter
05th March
At 8pm, Jupiter can be seen shining brightly high above the southwest horizon.
15th March
In the middle of March, we see this giant perched between the horns of Taurus the bull.
25th March
This is the view at 9pm and very little has changed.
Even though the Jovian disc also shrinks this month, it never gets particularly small and so always rewards us pointing a telescope at it.
This month, Jupiter is high and bright against a dark background in Taurus and well worth an examination.
Saturn
05th March
Just a week from passing behind the sun, we can’t see Saturn right now.
15th March
Superior conjunction was three days ago so Saturn is now a not-visible morning planet.
25th March
This view at 7am shows how shallow the ecliptic is and why we can’t yet see the Ringed Planet.
Near the middle of March, Saturn passes behind the sun, which means we’ll not get the chance to see it at all because it stays too close to our star.
Uranus & Neptune
15th March – Uranus
At 9pm, Uranus is about 35° over the western horizon.
15th March – Neptune
Neptune passes behind the sun on the 19th and so remains too close to it all month to be spied.
Uranus offers great views this month in the evening but Neptune can’t be seen at all because it’s passing behind the sun.
All Planets Viewer
Use the table below to see when each of the planets is observable for each day this month. Click on it for full screen.
A planet is classed as observable when it is more than 10° above the horizon and the sky is dark enough for it to be observed.
Planet ephemeris tables produced with the kind permission of Dominic Ford. Sky images are courtesy of SkySafari Pro 6.