5 planets take center stage

5 planets take center stage as they align in the night sky

A breathtaking glimpse of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn as they align in planetary order will be possible on June 24 thanks to a rare, five-planet alignment.

According to Diana Hannikainen, observing editor of Sky & Telescope, the event started at the beginning of June and has gotten brighter and simpler to spot as the month has gone on.

On Friday, another celestial object will join the celebration between Venus and Mars: a waning crescent moon. The moon will stand in for the Earth’s relative location in the alignment, which indicates the position of our planet in the planetary hierarchy.

How to view the alignment

To see the amazing phenomena, observers will require a clean view of the eastern horizon, according to Hannikainen. The planetary spectacle can be seen by people without glasses, but for the best viewing, she suggested using binoculars.
She claimed that the hour before sunrise is the optimum time to see the five planets. Check when the sun will rise in your location the night before you intend to see the alignment.

Hannikainen and other astronomers are particularly looking forward to the celestial event. To have the best view of the alignment, she flew from her house west of Boston to a beach hamlet along the Atlantic Ocean.
In the hopes that it will be clear, Hannikainen stated, “I’ll be out there with my binoculars, looking towards the east and southeast.”

People all across the world will be able to see the action, so you don’t need to go to see it.
While people in the Southern Hemisphere should look along the eastern to northeastern horizon, stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere can see the planets from the eastern to southeastern horizon. The only prerequisite is a clear sky in the alignment’s direction.