Stargazers across the world will be able to witness a rare celestial treat through the month of June, according to Sky & Telescope. Just before the sun rises, five planets will align in the night sky in a rare conjunction. Mercury, Venus, Mars Jupiter and Saturn will stretch across the sky from low in the east to higher in the south in that exact order.
The conjunction of two or three planets together is a fairly common occurrence but being able to see five at the same time is a rare event. The fact that these planets will be aligned in the same order as their distance from the sun makes this event even more special. Mercury will be tough to spot early in the month: viewers will need an unobstructed view of their eastern horizon and might need binoculars to spot it.
But as the month goes on, Mercury will continue to climb higher and higher while also brightening in the dark sky. This will make it easier to spot in the rare planetary lineup. The last time such an event happened was in December 2004. But this time, the gap between Mercury and Saturn is much shorter than the last time we could see five planets in the sky with our naked eyes.
According to Sky & Telescope, the planetary lineup will be most compelling on June 24 when Mercury will be much easier to spot. Viewers will also have about an hour to enjoy the conjunction between when Mercury moves above the horizon and the sunrise when it will be too bright to view the planets. Interestingly, there will also be a waning crescent moon positioned between Venus and Mars as the planets are spread further across the sky.
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PremiumEven if it is cloudy on June 24, you can still view the rare planetary conjunction on the other days of the month. All you have to do is wake up early before the sun rises and get an unobstructed view of the horizon at the place where you plan to witness the grand celestial event.
