Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Look up! 5 Planets Will Be Aligned in Night Sky This Week
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 1 year ago on
March 27, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Keep an eye to the sky this week for a chance to see a planetary hangout.

Five planets — Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus and Mars — will line up near the moon.

WHERE AND WHEN CAN YOU SEE THEM?

The best day to catch the whole group is Tuesday. You’ll want to look to the western horizon right after sunset, said NASA astronomer Bill Cooke.

The planets will stretch from the horizon line to around halfway up the night sky. But don’t be late: Mercury and Jupiter will quickly dip below the horizon around half an hour after sunset.

The five-planet spread can be seen from anywhere on Earth, as long as you have clear skies and a view of the west.

“That’s the beauty of these planetary alignments. It doesn’t take much,” Cooke said.

DO I NEED BINOCULARS?

Maybe. Jupiter, Venus and Mars will all be pretty easy to see since they shine brightly, Cooke said. Venus will be one of the brightest things in the sky, and Mars will be hanging out near the moon with a reddish glow. Mercury and Uranus could be trickier to spot, since they will be dimmer. You’ll probably need to grab a pair of binoculars.

If you’re a “planet collector,” it’s a rare chance to spot Uranus, which usually isn’t visible, Cooke said. Look out for its green glow just above Venus.

DOES THIS HAPPEN OFTEN?

Different numbers and groups of planets line up in the sky from time to time. There was a five-planet lineup last summer and there’s another one in June, with a slightly different makeup.

This kind of alignment happens when the planets’ orbits line them up on one side of the sun from Earth’s perspective, Cooke said.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

Jose Ramirez: ‘I Want to Make a Statement and Put on a Show’

DON'T MISS

‘IDEA’ Is the Latest Career-Oriented Campus on Fresno Unified’s Drawing Board

DON'T MISS

Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s 6 Shutout Innings Help Dodgers Finish Sweep, Defeat Nats 2-1

DON'T MISS

The 49ers Add Florida Receiver Ricky Pearsall With the 30th Draft Pick

DON'T MISS

Political Stunt, Egg on His Face, Personal Vendetta. Who’s Fresno DA Talking About?

DON'T MISS

Blockchain Expert Unravels Misconceptions and Realities of Bitcoin Documentaries

DON'T MISS

Did Fresno Trustees Violate Brown Act in Superintendent Search Decisions?

DON'T MISS

LA Judge Deals a Blow to Law Allowing Duplexes in Single-Family Tracts

DON'T MISS

US Announces New Patriot Missiles for Ukraine as Part of New $6 Billion Aid Package

DON'T MISS

Andy Reid and Taylor Swift Agree: Fresno’s Xavier Worthy Is a Great 1st-Round Draft Pick

UP NEXT

Antony Blinken Meets With China’s President Xi as US, China Spar Over Bilateral and Global Issues

UP NEXT

Tennessee Lawmakers Pass Bill Criminalizing Adults Assisting Minors in Gender-Affirming Care

UP NEXT

Ukraine Uses Long-Range Missiles Secretly Provided by US to Hit Russian-Held Areas, Officials Say

UP NEXT

Man Sets Himself on Fire Outside Trump Hush Money Trial Court

UP NEXT

Ship That Caused Bridge Collapse Had Apparent Electrical Issues While Still Docked, Source Says

UP NEXT

US Shoots Down Iran-Launched Attack Drones as Biden Team Pledges ‘Support’ for Israel

UP NEXT

US Intelligence Finding Shows China Surging Equipment Sales to Russia to Help War Effort in Ukraine

UP NEXT

US Measles Cases Are up in 2024. What’s Driving the Increase?

UP NEXT

Austin Tells Congress Israel Is Taking Steps to Boost Aid to Gaza as Lawmakers Question US Support

UP NEXT

The View for Fresno Eclipse Chasers in Texas? ‘Awesome’ to ‘Good Consolation Prize’

The 49ers Add Florida Receiver Ricky Pearsall With the 30th Draft Pick

1 hour ago

Political Stunt, Egg on His Face, Personal Vendetta. Who’s Fresno DA Talking About?

2 hours ago

Blockchain Expert Unravels Misconceptions and Realities of Bitcoin Documentaries

Did Fresno Trustees Violate Brown Act in Superintendent Search Decisions?

Local Education /

3 hours ago

LA Judge Deals a Blow to Law Allowing Duplexes in Single-Family Tracts

4 hours ago

US Announces New Patriot Missiles for Ukraine as Part of New $6 Billion Aid Package

4 hours ago

Andy Reid and Taylor Swift Agree: Fresno’s Xavier Worthy Is a Great 1st-Round Draft Pick

5 hours ago

The Protests Over the Israel-Hamas War Put a Spotlight on College Endowments

5 hours ago

Fed Plan to Rebuild Pacific Sardine Population Was Insufficient, California Judge Finds

5 hours ago

Egypt Sends Delegation to Israel, Its Latest Effort to Broker a Cease-Fire Between Israel and Hamas

6 hours ago

Jose Ramirez: ‘I Want to Make a Statement and Put on a Show’

All of the boxers on Saturday night’s big card at the Save Mart Center will enter the ring with something to prove. “I’m l...

13 mins ago

13 mins ago

Jose Ramirez: ‘I Want to Make a Statement and Put on a Show’

Local Education /
49 mins ago

‘IDEA’ Is the Latest Career-Oriented Campus on Fresno Unified’s Drawing Board

1 hour ago

Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s 6 Shutout Innings Help Dodgers Finish Sweep, Defeat Nats 2-1

1 hour ago

The 49ers Add Florida Receiver Ricky Pearsall With the 30th Draft Pick

2 hours ago

Political Stunt, Egg on His Face, Personal Vendetta. Who’s Fresno DA Talking About?

Crypto the Wonderdog Show Episode 5 Title Card

Blockchain Expert Unravels Misconceptions and Realities of Bitcoin Documentaries

Local Education /
3 hours ago

Did Fresno Trustees Violate Brown Act in Superintendent Search Decisions?

4 hours ago

LA Judge Deals a Blow to Law Allowing Duplexes in Single-Family Tracts

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend