This week, Mars and Jupiter will be visible in a close conjunction that hasn’t been seen in years.
From Earth’s perspective, the two planets will be closest to one another on Wednesday since 2018.
The two will actually be separated by more than 350 million miles. The experience is a phenomenal illustration of the perfect time and location combination. An astronomy phenomenon known as conjunction will occur when Mars swiftly passes Jupiter and the Earth is positioned in such a way as to make the other two planets appear extremely close.
Because of both planets’ brightness, a celestial optical illusion will be evident to the unaided eye. It will be a few years before the Mars-Jupiter encounter occurs again.
The ideal time to see the pair is a few hours before sunrise. On Wednesday, the two planets will seem closest. However, Elizabeth Warner, a professor member in the University of Maryland’s Astronomy Department, points out that viewers can begin to enjoy the pair right away and watch as the apparent distance between Mars and Jupiter gets closer and then farther apart.
“You’ll be able to see how these two kinds of dance through the sky,” she said, advising onlookers to check the sky each morning, preferably before dawn.
Mars, the red planet, will begin to move apart from Jupiter, the gas giant, after Wednesday. However, there will always be causes for concern. NASA reports that on August 27, the crescent moon will align with the two planets to form a brilliant asteroid belt.