BackFive planets align to form rare conjunction this month, visible to the naked eye
While it is common for two or three planets close together to align together, conjunction of five planets is rare and was last seen in December 2004
PremiumIn a rare celestial event, five planets – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn – have aligned in order of their distance from the Sun in June, giving an opportunity to sky watchers to see them with their naked eyes.
To see the alignment, observers will need to head outside roughly 30 minutes before sunrise and find a high ground for an unobstructed view.
Although the formation remains throughout the month, it was in its glory on 3 and 4 June. However, on 24 June, it will be even more compelling as the five planets will be visible for a longer duration (almost an hour). They will be joined by a guest, a crescent Moon placed between Venus and Mars.
According to Dr Greg Brown, the public astronomy officer at Royal Museums Greenwich, Venus and Jupiter would be the easiest to see as Mars will become difficult to see at twilight.
“Your only chance to see all five planets at the same time is during a very narrow window after Mercury has risen but before the sun has," Brown said.
“A pair of binoculars or a telescope may well be enough to overcome the twilight in the case of the fainter planets, but do be very careful when trying to observe particularly Mercury in this way. Ensure that the sun is below the horizon to avoid accidentally looking directly at it, which would be very dangerous for your eyes," she added.
She also said that Mercury will be easier to spot later in June as it rises in the sky and brightens.
While it is common for two or three planets close together to align together, conjunction of five planets is rare and was last seen in December 2004.
“This is really cool," Prof Beth Biller, personal chair of exoplanet characterisation at Edinburgh University's Institute for astronomy, was quoted as saying by The Guardian.
“We now know of many other stars hosting multiple planets. This is a rare opportunity to see the same thing closer to home, with all five ‘naked eye' planets in our solar system visible at once," she added.
This rare alignment will start to break up after June. In the next month, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter and Venus will appear more spread out in the predawn sky.
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