Stargazers will want to keep an eye on the evening sky tonight across Saskatchewan as a very rare seven planet parade will happen. The event does not occur very often because all of the planets must be aligned on the same side of the sun, which takes several years to accomplish. In fact, the next time a seven planet parade occurs won’t be until 2040, according to astronomers.
Tonight starting after sunset, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter will be visible without a telescope, however Mercury will be quite faint as it will be low in the sky just as the sun disappears.
Like Mercury, Saturn will be faint because it’ll be hugging the horizon and as a result of their distance, Neptune and Uranus will also be faint in this planetary parade, requiring a telescope or powerful binoculars astronomers say.
Venus, Jupiter, and Mars will be the most visible as they will be higher and brighter in the western night sky, especially Venus, which is a good planet to look for first in the parade since it will be the easiest to see. As for Mars, Astronomers say it’ll appear reddish-orange.
If the forecast hold out for tonight, the planetary parade may be difficult to see in Saskatchewan due to cloudy conditions. However, astronomy enthusiasts can follow the parade online in real time courtesy of the virtual telescope project 2.0.
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