If you’ve got any interest in skygazing, this is your week. A stunning planet parade is now visible in the night sky. A planet parade is when several of our solar system’s planets are visible in the night sky at the same time. All seven planets will be visible this time around, meaning Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus. (Earth, of course, is the eighth planet, and poor Pluto was demoted in 2006 and is now considered a dwarf planet.)
Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury and Saturn should be visible to the naked eye. You’ll need a high-powered viewing device like a telescope to spot Neptune and Uranus.
The best time to view the planets from the Northern Hemisphere will be just after sunset at around 8:30 p.m. local time. You still might be able to catch Venus, Mercury, Saturn and Neptune on the horizon after that, but those planets will be under the horizon by 11:30 p.m. to midnight depending on your location. After that, Mars, Jupiter and Uranus will remain visible for a few more hours with Mars finally setting just before sunrise.
By the time March gets underway, Mercury, Saturn and Neptune will have drifted too close to the sun to be readily visible with Venus not far behind, leaving Jupiter, Mars and Uranus to populate the night sky until the next parade begins.
Mars, Jupiter, and Uranus will be in the southeastern sky while Neptune, Venus, and Saturn will occupy the southwestern sky at approximately 9:30 p.m. local time.
Will my region see the planet parade?
Most, if not all, locations in the US, Canada and Mexico should be able to see the planetary parade this time around thanks to its long length and limited planetary movement. We checked observatories in California, Texas, Ohio and New York in the US, along with Calgary in Canada and Mexico City, Mexico, and were able to find all six planets at each location, so it doesn’t matter how far north, east, west or south you go, you’ll be able to see it.
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They’ll be there as soon as the sun sets. Once it’s dark, you’ll only have a couple of hours to view them before Venus, Saturn and Neptune dip below the horizon for the evening. This applies regardless of location, so no matter where you are, everything’s happening at around the same time.
During these last few days of February, Mercury is making its appearance and the parade has increased to seven planets. This will be best viewed right at sunset and will be more difficult to see while the sun is still on the horizon.
Will I need any special equipment to view the parade?
Technically yes. You’ll be able to spot Venus, Mars, Jupiter and potentially Saturn with the naked eye in opportune conditions. However, Neptune and Uranus are simply too far away to spot. Astronomers note that you’ll likely need a telescope with at least an 8-inch aperture at 50 times magnification to see Uranus and its rings, and 150 times magnification to see Neptune and its rings. If you’re so equipped, give that telescope a point at Saturn. At 25 times magnification, you’ll be able to see the crown jewel of our solar system in all its glory.
Standard space viewing rules also apply here. You’ll want to get away from the city, where light pollution can obfuscate your view. Even the suburbs may not be far enough away for many folks. If you’re planning a long drive out of the city and its surroundings, you’ll want to make sure it’s a clear night with as little cloud cover as possible.
How can I find the planets in the sky?
Given that Neptune and Uranus are particularly hard to find paired with the fact that Saturn and Venus will be right next to each other, there may be some difficulty in finding all six planets in the sky.
For this, there are a few good tools available. Check out Stellarium’s website, along with Time and Date’s Night Sky Map. Those should give you a good idea of where each planet is in relation to the others. Star Walk 2 is an excellent app on Android and iOS. Stellarium has its own Android and iOS apps as well.
What is a planetary parade?
A planetary parade is a colloquial term that applies when four or more planets line up in the night sky at once. It’s not an official astronomy term so you’ll rarely hear astronomers use it. However, NASA has been known to refer to the phenomenon as a “parade of planets.”
The official term is planetary alignment, although that term tends to seed a little bit of confusion. Some interpretations of the phrase include the planets lining up on the same side of the sun all right next to each other. The planets can never fully line up exactly like you see in pictures, but they can all be on the same side of the sun and relatively close to lining up.
In day-to-day use, though, planetary parades and alignments are the same thing and simply describe when there are several planets visible in the night sky at the same time. These planets may be nowhere near each other in their solar orbits but are visible from the perspective of Earth.
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