What to image in March with the Celestron Origin

Galaxy season begins. Leo, Coma Berenices, Virgo and Ursa Major bring dozens of galaxies to a dark sky; from town they are the hardest targets on the site, so this is the month to find a darker one. The Moon-lit half of the month still has the Orion region early and the Beehive cluster.

Moon in March 2027: new on 8 Mar, full on 22 Mar. Broadband targets (galaxies, clusters) want the week either side of new; emission nebulae behind a dual-band filter tolerate the rest.

48 targets transit near midnight in March. From a suburban sky the Origin gets a solid image of 45 of them in under an hour each; 3 need longer, or a darker sky, or several nights. Times below use the recommended filter and 10 s subs.

Solid image with the Celestron Origin, sorted by the Bortle 6 figure. Each link opens the full Bortle 1 to 9 table with sub-length and filter comparisons.
Target	Type	Bortle 4	Bortle 6	Bortle 8
M3Canes Venatici	Globular cluster	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	7 min40 subs
Beehive ClusterCancer	Open cluster	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs
M48Hydra	Open cluster	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs
M67Cancer	Open cluster	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs
Omega CentauriCentaurus	Globular cluster	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs
Carina NebulaCarina	Emission nebula	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	9 min52 subs
Ghost of JupiterHydra	Planetary nebula	5 min30 subs	5 min30 subs	8 min49 subs
M94Canes Venatici	Galaxy	5 min30 subs	8 min46 subs	21 min124 subs
M68Hydra	Globular cluster	5 min30 subs	8 min51 subs	23 min139 subs
Black Eye GalaxyComa Berenices	Galaxy	5 min30 subs	9 min55 subs	25 min151 subs
Cigar GalaxyUrsa Major	Galaxy	5 min30 subs	9 min56 subs	25 min153 subs
M53Coma Berenices	Globular cluster	5 min30 subs	9 min57 subs	26 min158 subs
Centaurus ACentaurus	Galaxy	5 min31 subs	11 min66 subs	31 min186 subs
M66Leo	Galaxy	5 min33 subs	11 min66 subs	30 min181 subs
Southern PinwheelHydra	Galaxy	6 min36 subs	12 min75 subs	35 min211 subs
Sombrero GalaxyVirgo	Galaxy	6 min37 subs	12 min75 subs	35 min209 subs
M59Virgo	Galaxy	6 min39 subs	13 min77 subs	35 min210 subs
M65Leo	Galaxy	7 min40 subs	14 min83 subs	39 min234 subs
Owl NebulaUrsa Major	Planetary nebula	7 min43 subs	14 min86 subs	39 min236 subs
Whale GalaxyCanes Venatici	Galaxy	7 min40 subs	14 min87 subs	41 min249 subs
Whirlpool GalaxyCanes Venatici	Galaxy	7 min44 subs	16 min94 subs	44 min265 subs
M60Virgo	Galaxy	8 min46 subs	16 min95 subs	44 min262 subs
M105Leo	Galaxy	8 min47 subs	16 min96 subs	44 min264 subs
M87Virgo	Galaxy	8 min48 subs	17 min100 subs	47 min280 subs
Bode's GalaxyUrsa Major	Galaxy	8 min47 subs	17 min102 subs	49 min293 subs
M106Canes Venatici	Galaxy	8 min47 subs	17 min104 subs	50 min299 subs
Needle GalaxyComa Berenices	Galaxy	8 min48 subs	17 min105 subs	50 min303 subs
M49Virgo	Galaxy	9 min52 subs	18 min111 subs	52 min314 subs
M84Virgo	Galaxy	10 min61 subs	21 min127 subs	59 min356 subs
M85Coma Berenices	Galaxy	11 min64 subs	22 min134 subs	1 h 03 min379 subs
M108Ursa Major	Galaxy	11 min64 subs	23 min138 subs	1 h 05 min393 subs
M89Virgo	Galaxy	11 min66 subs	23 min138 subs	1 h 05 min390 subs
M86Virgo	Galaxy	11 min64 subs	23 min139 subs	1 h 06 min398 subs
M96Leo	Galaxy	12 min72 subs	26 min154 subs	1 h 13 min439 subs
Sunflower GalaxyCanes Venatici	Galaxy	12 min71 subs	26 min157 subs	1 h 16 min457 subs
M88Coma Berenices	Galaxy	13 min81 subs	29 min175 subs	1 h 23 min500 subs
Antennae GalaxiesCorvus	Galaxy	15 min88 subs	32 min191 subs	1 h 31 min546 subs
M100Coma Berenices	Galaxy	17 min101 subs	37 min223 subs	1 h 47 min643 subs
NGC 2903Leo	Galaxy	16 min98 subs	37 min224 subs	1 h 50 min660 subs
Hamburger GalaxyLeo	Galaxy	17 min104 subs	40 min239 subs	1 h 58 min708 subs
M90Virgo	Galaxy	18 min107 subs	40 min241 subs	1 h 57 min705 subs
M58Virgo	Galaxy	19 min113 subs	41 min249 subs	2 h719 subs
M99Coma Berenices	Galaxy	20 min120 subs	44 min267 subs	2 h 09 min775 subs
M61Virgo	Galaxy	22 min133 subs	50 min298 subs	2 h 24 min867 subs
M95Leo	Galaxy	24 min147 subs	56 min334 subs	2 h 43 min978 subs
M98Coma Berenices	Galaxy	26 min157 subs	1 h362 subs	2 h 58 min1,070 subs
M109Ursa Major	Galaxy	26 min159 subs	1 h362 subs	2 h 58 min1,066 subs
M91Coma Berenices	Galaxy	27 min162 subs	1 h 01 min367 subs	2 h 59 min1,075 subs

Other telescopes in March: Seestar S50 · Seestar S50 Pro · Seestar S30 · Seestar S30 Pro · DWARF 3 · DWARF mini · Draco · DWARF II · Vespera II · Vespera Pro · Vespera 3 · Vespera Pro 2 · eQuinox 2 · Odyssey · Origin Mark II

Previous: February · Next: April · Tonight with the Origin

Where to buy the OriginSearch Amazon UK Search Amazon USAffiliate links: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, at no cost to you. Search links may include other models; check the exact variant and package.