This month, six planets in the solar system — Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Venus, Neptune and Saturn — will appear in Earth’s skies in a “parade of planets.”
Although the dark hours of Jan. 21 and 25 may be good times to see it, as various media outlets have publicized, this sight will not be restricted to one or two nights. It will be possible to see a giant arc of planets any clear night in January (and it was visible in December, too). And, in fact, an even greater opportunity lies in the months ahead, when yet another planet joins the “parade.”
Which planets will be visible in January?
Jan. 21 is a good time to look at the arc of planets because that’s when the moon reaches its last quarter phase, when the half-lit orb rises around midnight. That clears the way for dark evening skies, though light pollution won’t hamper views of the bright planets.
On Jan. 21, it will be possible to see Saturn and Venus close to each other in the west — just days after their close conjunction on Jan. 18 — with Jupiter shining above in the south and Mars (fresh from its bright opposition on Jan. 15) above in the east. Uranus will be just to the right of Jupiter, while Neptune will be right above Venus. To see Uranus and Neptune, however, you’ll need a powerful backyard telescope.
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A newcomer joins in March
The effect will be striking — but an even greater sight can be had in the first week of March, when Mercury will join the fray.
As Mercury closes in on its greatest elongation east (farthest from the sun in Earth’s sky) on March 8, the tiny inner planet will be between Saturn and Venus close to the western horizon. For good measure, you’ll also see a slim crescent moon just above the trio. Neptune, though invisible to the naked eye, will be alongside Mercury. Above will be Uranus (not visible without a telescope), Jupiter and Mars.
However, the parade will eventually come to an end, with Saturn sinking into the sun’s glare. It will be in solar conjunction on March 12, effectively ending any chance of a parade of planets.
While they will all share the night sky at the same time, the planets are not aligned during these parades, as is often mistakenly claimed. All of the planets orbit the solar system on the same plane, called the ecliptic. The ecliptic is the same path the sun takes in the daytime sky. As seen from Earth, whatever is on one side of the solar system is visible in the evening sky, and everything on the opposite side is present in the morning sky. However, whatever planets are visible and always seen along the ecliptic are always in some sort of a line.
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