A rare parade of planets will light up the night sky throughout January.
Six planets will be aligned all month; four of which will be visible to the naked eye, Preston Dyches, public engagement specialist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and host of NASA’s “What’s Up” sky-watching series, told ABC News. .
Saturn, a darker object, is pictured near a bright Venus on January 21, 2023.
NASA/Preston Dyches
Venus and Saturn will be there connectormeaning they will appear closest to each other on Friday and Saturday, Dyches said. Both can be seen with the naked eye during the first two hours after dark, facing west Space.com.
As it faces south, a “bright” Jupiter will shine, Dyches said, while to the east will be Mars, which will be as bright and reddish in color as Jupiter.
These four planets should be visible all month long, as long as the moonlight doesn’t overwhelm the view, Dyches said. But the moon’s brightest phases have already passed by January, which means it is currently waning and will be third quarter on Tuesday and new moon on January 29.
A sky chart for mid-January 2025 shows a southern view around 7:00 p.m.
NASA
Two other planets will be visible with a telescope, Dyches said. Uranus is higher in the sky, next to Jupiter, and Neptune is in the west, above Saturn and Venus, he said, adding that a self-guided telescope — that is, a telescope controlled by a computer — could help stargazers locate each. the planet
“Uranus and Neptune, the two giant ice planets very far out in our solar system, are also there in the sky,” Dyches said. “But they are very weak.”
Anyone with a telescope will also benefit from viewing Saturn, as its signature rings will become clear when magnified, according to Space.com.
Conjunctions of three or more planets don’t happen every year, like other celestial events such as meteor showers, Dyches said, noting that the sky has a “cyclical nature” due to the movement of the stars and planets.
Jupiter, Venus, Mercury and Mars are seen in a rare alignment over the east coast of Australia on May 13, 2011 in Sydney, Australia.
Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Venus will be visible until April 1st Space.com. It will be at its brightest from January 28th to February 27th and will reach its greatest brightness on February 14th.
Saturn will appear as a yellowish-white body with moderate brightness, according to Space.com. It will be within the boundaries of Aquarius all year, and will be visible with a telescope in the evenings until February 23rd and in the mornings from March 30th to September 20th. It will be on September 21. visible again in the evenings.
A line of three planets in the evening sky in the southwestern sunset on December 17, 2021, with Jupiter in the upper left, Venus in the lower right, and dusky Saturn in the center, defining the line of the ecliptic in cold winter. the sky tonight
Alan Dyer/Getty Images
Jupiter will have a silver-white glow in the evenings until June 3rd and in the mornings from July 16th to December 31st.
Mars will also be in opposition for the entire month it is visible, meaning it will be on the opposite side of Earth from the sun, something that happens roughly every two years. It is nightfall in the east and dawn in the southwest, he says NASA.
