Saturn, Mars, Venus and Jupiter will line up perfectly in the pre-dawn sky this month.
Saturn, Mars and Venus have already been grouping together since the end of March, but it is only from mid-April that Jupiter will join them. The exact scheduled date is April 17.
Observers further east and south of North America will be able to witness this spectacle very early in the morning, while those in the Pacific Northwest will not see the cluster rise until about an hour before. the sunrise.
In early April, Venus, Mars, and Saturn form a trio in the sky. Not to be left out, catch Jupiter similarly close to Venus on April 30.
More of “what’s up” this month: https://t.co/TSK1zbIbrc pic.twitter.com/UJHKpGmNro
—NASA (@NASA) March 31, 2022
A few days later, around April 23, the alignment should become even more spectacular, thanks to the appearance of the Moon in the same axis.
6 planets aligned
On June 24, an even more spectacular event will be observable. All of the planets in the solar system (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus) will come together in a planetary alignment that will span more of the sky. On the other hand, if the April month alignment will be visible to the naked eye, it will require binoculars or telescopes.
A rare event
According to Michelle Nichols, director of public observation at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, interviewed in Live Science, you have to “look for constant light” to be able to distinguish planets from surrounding stars. “The light from the planets is less affected by the Earth’s atmosphere than the light from the stars. The general rule is that the stars twinkle, not the planets,” she explained.
For example, on June 27, Mercury will be located under the crescent Moon, on the right side, which can facilitate its observation.
In any case, major planetary alignments visible to the naked eye are very rare. This phenomenon has only occurred three times since 2005. So, if you like to admire the stars and planets, this is an appointment not to be missed.