Celestial Spectacle: Rare Alignment Of 6 Planets Is About to Happen in The Sky Soon

First came a rare solar eclipse, followed by the northern lights, driven by a solar storm. Next month, skygazers can anticipate another celestial event: "Planetary Parade".

During the rare celestial event, all six planets will be visible before sunrise on June 3, where people can enjoy the sight of Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune in a single line.

Image Courtesy: Kamran Abdullayev/Unsplash+

Upcoming Planetary Parade

The event will commence on June 3, featuring an alignment of Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, as reported by Star Walk Astronomical News, a planetarium phone app. During such alignments, multiple planets can be observed across the sky. A "mini planetary alignment" involves three planets, while a large alignment includes five or six.

However, seeing all these planets might not be possible. Eagle-eyed viewers will be able to see Jupiter, Mercury, Mars and Saturn with the naked eye. Those with high-powered binoculars or a telescope will also be able to peep at Uranus, which will be located near Mercury, and Neptune, which will be near Saturn.

Preston Dyches of NASA's "Skywatching Tips" video series explained that only two planets might be visible to the naked eye on June 3. "Contrary to many reports and social media postings, there will not be a string of naked-eye planets visible on June 3," he stated. "Mercury and Jupiter will be too low in the sky at sunrise. Even under ideal conditions (a dark sky, free from light pollution), Uranus is very dim and challenging to spot. The skyglow near dawn makes matters worse."

Neptune, which is six times dimmer than Uranus, requires a telescope to be seen. Dyches highlighted that the "real parade" will occur about four weeks later, on June 29, when Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the three-quarter moon will be visible in the morning twilight. According to Paul Robertson, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at UC Irvine, this should happen around 5 or 6 am in Southern California. "If you went out that morning, you could actually see all of those four objects at the same time, and that's not really the same for the June 3 thing," he said.

Nova Outburst Expected

The parades are not the end of this year's sky spectacles. A nova outburst is expected to occur before September, Robertson mentioned. The outburst will be visible in the constellation Corona Borealis and will shine as brightly as the North Star for about a week before fading, according to Space.com. This phenomenon happens when a white dwarf and red giant star orbit each other. As the white dwarf takes stellar material from the red giant, a flash of nuclear fusion ignites, causing a nova outburst, which is considered a "once-in-a-lifetime stargazing opportunity."

"I think people may have gotten more interested in watching the sky since the big eclipse," Robertson noted. "I know people traveled for that. It changes your perspective on things."