Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
post

Rare planetary alignment after 18 years, 5 planets and the moon will be aligned in a line

Mon 20 Jun 2022    
EcoBalance
| 3 min read

Dubai-UAE: As we are reaching the end of June, a rare sight awaits in the pre-dawn sky: a parade of planets. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, all five planets that can be seen in the sky with just our eyes will form a planetary parade spanning across a wide swath of sky. Moon in the same line will be a complimentary treat for observers. This rare phenomenon is lined up for the UAE sky on June 24th, 2022. The last time this happened was in December 2004.

According to Sky & Telescope magazine, on June 24th, the planetary lineup this morning is even more compelling. To begin with, Mercury will be much easier to snag, making the five-planet parade that much more accessible. And you’ll have about an hour to enjoy the sight, from when Mercury pops above the horizon to when the rising Sun washes it out of the sky. But the real bonus is the waning crescent Moon positioned between Venus and Mars, serving as a proxy Earth.

Talking to TheBrew, Hasan Al Hariri, CEO-Dubai Astronomy Group, said that it is one of the rare astronomical phenomena, to see the lineup to its fullest extent, enthusiasts need to arise as dawn is beginning to brighten the sky. Keep in mind that it will be decades before you’ll have another opportunity to see the planets and moon arranged in such a manner, so don’t miss this chance!

Mercury, Venus, Moon, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn alignment on June 24th,2020 Photo Courtesy: Sky & Telescope

A planetary alignment/parade occurs when our Solar System’s planets appear to line up at the same ascension level in the night sky, as seen from Earth. They don’t really create a perfect line in our Solar System; each planet’s orbital plane causes the illusion. Three-planet parades are quite common and occur about twice a year. The more planets in the parade, the rarer the celestial event is. This month we will be witnessing a rare 5-planet alignment in our night sky. This alignment is called a Large Planetary Parade which happens almost every 18- 19 years.

Al Hariri added that make sure you have an unobstructed view of the horizons so that you’ll have a clear view of the moon and planets on a given morning. The best views will be either from an elevated area above any tall buildings or trees or from a shoreline where you can look out over open water to a flat sea horizon.

Related Articles:

Astronomers captured the first image of the mega black hole

Three thousand kilograms of space junk has crashed into the Moon

How to observe: Al Thuraya Astronomy Center and Dubai Astronomy Group is organizing a paid event to observe this astronomical event, during the early hours of Friday 24th of June at Al Qudra Desert in Dubai to Observe this large planetary parade (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the Moon, and perhaps Uranus and Neptune too) before the break of dawn.

Event Program is consisting of the Saturn & Jupiter Observation, Arabian Astronomy/Sky Mapping Session (Stories about the Constellations), Mars Observation, Q & A Session, Moon Observation, attempting to observe Uranus & Neptune, Venus Observation, and Mercury Observation. Telescope Observation all throughout the event of planets and deep-sky objects. Phone photography of celestial objects through the telescopes.

The event will start at 01:00 AM and will end by 05:00 AM on June 24th,2022. TheBrew readers can book the ticket for the event HERE.  

Source of Information and pictures: Space, Wtop, sky and telescope, and AccuWeather  

Good luck, and may you have clear skies!


Leave a Reply