NEW YORK – Six planets will come together in the sky at the end of February, and most will be visible to the naked eye.
This is what is known as a planetary parade, which occurs when several planets appear to align in the sky at the same time. The planets are not in a straight line, but close together on one side of the Sun.
According to NASA, skywatchers can see two or three planets after sunset. Groups of four or five planets that can be seen with the naked eye are less frequent and occur every few years. Last year there were alignments of six and seven planets.
When will they be visible?
On Saturday, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye if the sky is clear. Uranus and Neptune can only be seen with binoculars and telescopes.
1/7 | With her sights on space: Puerto Rican engineer leaves her mark on NASA. Olga González Sanabria was the first Puerto Rican engineer to work at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Ohio, where she arrived after completing her high school degree in 1979. – Supplied
What time is best to see it?
Go outside about an hour after sunset and stay away from tall buildings and trees that block your view. Look at the western sky and see Mercury, Venus, and Saturn near the horizon. Jupiter will be higher up, along with Uranus and Neptune.
How do you know if you’ve spied on a member of the parade?
“If it blinks, it’s a star. If it doesn’t blink, it’s a planet.”says planetary scientist Sara Mazrouei, from the Humber Polytechnic (Canada).
The parade should be visible throughout the weekend and in the days following. Eventually, Mercury will retreat and set below the horizon.
At least one bright planet is visible on most nights, according to NASA.
Glimpsing many in the sky at once is a fun way to connect with astronomers from centuries past, said planetary scientist Emily Elizondo of Michigan State University.
Ancient astronomers used to make sense of the universe “just by looking at the stars and planets,” Elizondo said, “something we can do today.”
This story was translated from English to Spanish with an artificial intelligence tool and was reviewed by an editor before publication.