It is an extremely rare event that will occur in the sky next week. From June 14, the majority of the planets of the solar system will indeed be observable at the same time from Earth, thanks to an unprecedented rapprochement.
Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, as well as the Moon, will thus be visible to the naked eye, reports The Parisian. It will be enough simply to bring binoculars to be able to observe the three other planets completing the rest of the solar system, namely Mercury, Uranus and Neptune.
According to calculations by the Institute of Celestial Mechanics and Ephemeris Calculation (IMCCE), the planets and the Moon will form a fully visible line at the end of the night between June 14 and June 27. The phenomenon will be at its peak on the night of June 22, when the rapprochement will be at its maximum level.
To have the best chance of witnessing this event, it is better to be in a place with a clear horizon and to be ready around 4 am. “We will have to be on the lookout, because it will not last for hours”, warns Pascal Descamps, head of the astronomical calculations and information service of the IMCCE, questioned by our French colleagues. “I would say about fifteen minutes from when Mercury is high enough to be visible to the end of twilight.”
The last planetary rapprochement dates back to 1997. The next time such a phenomenon will be observable from Earth will be in November 2124… in 102 years! Better not to miss this appointment.