Planetary Parade to be visible from Jan's last week till mid-Fab: Suparco
Technology
Suparco says Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye
(Web Desk) - Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) has said people will be able to see the “Parade of the Planets,” a celestial spectacle in which four or more planets will line up in the sky, from the naked eye beginning from the last week of January till mid-February.
A planetary parade, or planetary alignment, is a rare celestial event where multiple planets in our solar system align in a straight line or appear close together in the sky.
This occurs when the orbits of the planets bring them together in a specific configuration.
“The lining up of four or more planets in the sky is usually called Parade of the Planets,” Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) said.
“Out of all these planets, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye.”
It said that since the moon will be a waning crescent on Jan 25, from a moderately pollution free sky, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will appear within a similar celestial line.
The space agency said familiarity with constellations would make it easier for people to identify planets. It said many free stargazing applications were available to identify celestial objects in the sky.
“To find out the name of an object, access the app and point the device toward the object in the sky and the app will display the names of the objects toward which the app is pointed out,” Suparco said.
It said Mars would be visible on the eastern horizon in the constellation Gemini whereas a brighter Jupiter would be located in the constellation Taurus.
“If the sky is dark enough, you can also enjoy the beautiful Pleiades, Hyades, and the yellow star Aldebaran,” Suparco said.
The space agency said high-powered binoculars or a telescope would be required to observe Uranus which lies in the constellation Aries.
It added that strong binoculars would be required to see Neptune in the constellation Pisces while Saturn and Venus would also be visible.
