Astronomy: Rare 'planet parade' this weekend

Image source, Getty Images

Stargazers will be treated to a special rare 'planet parade' this month!

Five planets from our solar system - Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn - will all line-up in order and be visible in the early-morning sky without a telescope.

The last time stargazers could see the planets in formation like this was in 2004.

This rare astronomical event will be visible on Saturday morning, but don't worry if you miss it, there'll be another chance to see them again on 24 June.

What is the best time to spot the planets?

Image source, Sky&Telescope

Image caption, The planets will appear to shine in a row because they orbit our Sun in a narrow plane, meaning that when we look at them from Earth they appear to look close to an imaginary line called the ecliptic.

If you want to catch the 'planet parade' in action, you'd better have your alarm clocks at the ready!

Rising in the southeastern sky, Saturn will be visible at around 1:30am, Mars and Jupiter at 2:45am, Venus at 4am, and finally Mercury at 4:30am.

Astrologers at Sky&Telescope magazine say that "You'll have less than half an hour between when Mercury first appears above the horizon, and when it essentially gets lost in the glare of the rising sun,"

So the best time to spot them all will be between 4:30am-5am.

Image source, Sky&Telescope

Image caption, The planets will be joined by the Moon on 24 June.

But if you miss it, the planets will line back up again on 24 June, and this time they will be visible for a bit longer, and be joined by the Moon!

If you will be watching, make sure you wrap up warm if you go outside, and be careful not to stare at the Sun, as it could hurt your eyes.

Check out our top stargazing tips here!