Planetary parade offers celestial showcase with binoculars needed
At night, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune will align in a line in the sky. Although most of these planets will be visible to the naked eye, some require binoculars for observation.
A planetary parade is a phenomenon that occasionally appears in the night sky when the planets of the Solar System form an apparent line. The next such spectacle will be visible on January 25 and will include six planets: Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. However, they can already be observed in a similar conjunction starting on January 21. Over time, Mercury will also join them, appearing in the following weeks.
Planetary parade 2025: not all can be seen with the naked eye
The arrangement of the planets will resemble a curved line. The spectacle will begin in the east with Mars, followed by Jupiter and Neptune. The Moon will be in the central position, with Venus, Neptune, and Saturn somewhat further away. During this parade, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn will be easily visible. However, to see Uranus and Neptune, which are more distant from Earth, more advanced equipment, such as binoculars or a telescope, will be needed, as they are unlikely to be seen with the naked eye.
AstroLife reports that the planets of the Solar System will indeed be aligned, but this time not concentrated entirely in one constellation, but slightly distant from each other. They will be viewable on January 25.
These phenomena are not as rare as they seem
"In amateur astronomy, such parades are talked about quite often because these phenomena do indeed occur," says the creator of the AstroLife channel, an enthusiast and popularizer via YouTube, adding that a truly extraordinary parade will happen in a few years — in 2040, when all visible bright planets will be in the constellation of Virgo; however, they will be visible from the Southern Hemisphere. "And there, something absolutely incredible will indeed take place," he informed.
