You can see 5 planets with the naked eye lined up in the sky! Find out how you see this rare alignment – teach me about science

This month’s sky has something truly epic in store for us: a rare alignment of five planets that you don’t even need a telescope to see! This isn’t something you see every year, so it’s a special opportunity. Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and Mercury can be seen with the naked eye in the morning sky this month.

From time to time, the relative position of the stars in the sky is shown aligned from the ground, so that you can draw a line between them. Of course that’s only from our point of view, and it rarely happens with multiple planets. On the other hand, conjugation refers to the proximity of two or more celestial bodies in the celestial vault. By themselves all of these objects would shine close enough to each other to see all at once, although this is only an apparent position because in reality they are even hundreds of millions of kilometers apart.

When and when do you see? The lineup you can see from tonight! It is visible throughout June, although the best time may come on the 24th of the month when there will be more time to see the planets. During the night: Saturn is first to rise around 2 am. An hour later Jupiter and Mars will appear; When it is five in the morning, Venus and finally Mercury will appear before sunrise.

How and in what direction do you see? To enjoy the event, just look at the sky before dawn in the direction East and Southeast. can be seen from AnywhereAlthough you have to consider the weather conditions: you need a clear sky and free of light pollution to enjoy it to the fullest. Also consider the path of the celestial bodies, the time and place of their departure, you can help with a program or a mobile application. Here you have a long list of apps for astronomy lovers.

Surprisingly, Neptune and Uranus will also be present at the party. With the difference that these planets are not visible to the naked eye. If you have observational equipment, such as a suitable telescope, you can try to capture it. On June 3, Neptune appears between Jupiter and Saturn, while Uranus appears between Venus and Mercury.

What else can I watch these days? In addition to this event, the earliest date we can determine for seeing the planets is June 16 – Mercury is at its westernmost elongation. according to the skyMercury reaches a maximum westerly elongation of 23.2 degrees with respect to the Sun. This is the best time to view Mercury as it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the morning sky. Look for the low planet in the eastern sky just before sunrise.

Aligning the five visible planets without the aid of telescopes is extremely rare, and the last time it happened was in 2020 and before that in 2016 and 2005. Stay tuned for our astronomy section so you don’t miss any of them. a clear sky!