A Spectacular ‘Super Pink Moon,’ ‘Shooting Stars’ And A Galaxy-Rise: Your Stargazing Guide To April 2021

April is here and finally it’s warm enough in the northern hemisphere to contemplate longer stargazing sessions in relative comfort. 

This month’s night skies are awash with constellations, with Leo, the Lion, and Ursa Major, the Great Bear, especially dominant. This month also sees our satellite, the Moon, go into conjunction with Jupiter and Saturn, a spectacular “Super Pink Moon” and—perhaps most impressively of all—the rise of the arc of the Milky Way. 

Here’s what happening above our heads in April 2021: 

A crescent moon (L) is seen with Saturn (upper right) and Jupiter (lower right).

Getty Images

1. Crescent Moon, Jupiter and Saturn

When: Just before sunrise on April 6 and 7, 2021

Where to look: southeastern sky

With Jupiter and Saturn having emerged in the pre-dawn skies, you can watch a 31%-lit crescent Moon pass the gas giants on successive mornings if you have a view low to the southeastern horizon.

It will pass 4° from Saturn on 6 April followed by 4.4° from Jupiter on 7 April, with the former close pass taking place in darker skies. 

A Lyrid Meteor Shower captured on April 22, 2016 in Starina, Slovakia. Lyrid shower occurs every ... [+] April when the Earth passes through the moving dust and debris left behind by the comet Thatcher (also known as comet C/1861 G1), as this icy body travels around the sun on its 415-year orbit. PHOTOGRAPH BY Robert Nemeti / Barcroft Media UK Office, London. T +44 845 370 2233 W www.barcroftmedia.com USA Office, New York City. T +1 212 796 2458 W www.barcroftusa.com Indian Office, Delhi. T +91 11 4053 2429 W www.barcroftindia.com (Photo credit should read Robert Nemeti / Barcroft Media / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

Barcroft Media via Getty Images

2. Lyrid meteor shower

When: Just before sunrise on April 21/22, 2021

Where to look: all sky

Though active between April 16-25, 2021, the Lyrid meteor shower will this year take place under the watch of a 70%-lit waxing gibbous Moon. That’s not ideal, and means you’ll only see the very brightest “shooting stars” from the expected 10 to 15 meteors per hour.

However, since the chief attraction of the Lyrids is the possibility of a super-bright “fireball,” that’s perhaps not a killer blow. Go out stargazing when it’s really dark—around midnight—and you might see one. Besides, the best chance of seeing “shooting stars” is in the hour before dawn, when the Moon will have set in the west. 

A "Blood Moon" shining beside the Beehive star cluster, Messier 44, in Cancer. (Photo by: Alan ... [+] Dyer/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

3. Beehive Cluster

When: February to May

Where: highest around midnight  

An open cluster of stars about 520 light-years distant in the constellation of Cancer, the Beehive Cluster is one of the nearest and best-looking open clusters of stars to the Solar System.

Also known as both Praesepe and M44, it appears as around 60 stars in a pair of binoculars, though a dozen or so stand out. 

Crowds look on as the super moon rises behind the Fremantle War Memorial at Monument Hill on ... [+] November 14, 2016 in Fremantle, Australia. A super moon occurs when a full moon passes closes to earth than usual, with the November 14th moon expected to be closer than it has been in over 70 years. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

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4. A ‘Super Pink Moon’ 

When: Moonrise on April 26, 2021

Where to look: low the eastern horizon

A full Moon that coincides (or thereabouts) with the Moon’s perigee—the closest point in the Moon’s monthly orbit that it comes to Earth—is often called a “supermoon.” It’s a result of the Moon’s orbit being slightly elliptical, which make the full Moon sometimes looks slightly larger.

That’s exactly what’s happening tonight, and it will be best viewed at moonrise where you are. 

A waxing crescent moon shines over the Bow River, accompanied by Saturn (just right of centre) and ... [+] the pairing of Mars (at left, top) and Antares, the rival of Mars in Scorpius (at left, bottom). Other stars in the head of Scorpius lie just to the left of the moon. Photographed from the grounds of Blackfoot Crossing Historical Park, south of Cluny, Alberta on the Siksika First Nations reserve.

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5. Antares and the Moon

When: Just before sunrise on Thursday, April 1, 2021 and on Thursday, April 29, 2021

Where to look: southeastern sky

Look to the southeast horizon before sunrise on these two mornings and you’ll see a waning gibbous Moon about 5° Antares, the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius, the Scorpion.

Antares is a red supergiant star that will one day explode as a supernova. It’s around 555 light-years distant. 

The arch of the northern spring Milky Way across the eastern sky, as seen on a beautifully clear and ... [+] mild spring night at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta on May 14, 2018 The galactic centre in Sagittarius is at right to the south Jupiter is the bright object in the southwest at far right; above it Arcturus The Summer Triangle stars are rising in the east at centre, including bright blue-white Vega at top centre The Big Dipper is at far left Due north and the North Star are at left toward the faint yellow-green and magenta glow of aurora on the horizon Little of the aurora was visible to the eye Bands of green and red airglow colour the sky at centre and at right to the south The distinct and sharp-edged band of airglow was present all through the shooting session This is a stitch of 21 segments, in 3 tiers of 7 each, taken with the Syrp Genie Mini controller in panorama mode, but with the camera manually raised from 0 to 30 to 60 altitude for each of the three tiers The Mini did the azimuth panning and shutter control automatically All exposures were 30 seconds at f/28 with the Sigma 20mm Art lens and Nikon D750 at ISO 6400 Stitching was with PTGui which did the job fast and seamlessly. (Photo by: VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Universal Images Group via Getty Images

6. The core of the Milky Way

When: April-September

Where: southern night sky

The bright centre of our galaxy is a seasonal event and it helps to know when it's up. It emerges from the horizon in April, rising around midnight, by mid-June it rises right after sunset, and by July it’s already up after dark.

The further south you travel, the more of our galaxy’s bright core becomes visible. 

Times and dates given apply to mid-northern latitudes. For the most accurate location-specific information consult online planetariums like Stellarium and The Sky Live. Check planet-rise/planet-set, sunrise/sunset and moonrise/moonset times for where you are. 

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes. 

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