By Eleanor Barnes, First Year, English
Winter can be a tedious time with shorter sunlight hours, January blues, and tight budgets. I know it can be hard to find exciting things to look forward to in these dreary months. However, good news for stargazers everywhere: a planetary alignment of six planets will be visible this January and February.
For anyone wanting a free, astronomical adventure to liven up the evening hours, take a look into the night sky and you will be able to see the planets Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus. Uranus and Neptune, although also part of the alignment, can only be seen with an optical aid, like a telescope or binoculars. Furthermore, Jonathan O'Callaghan from the BBC states for one night only on the 28th of February Mercury will also join them to complete a seventh alignment.
To understand why the alignment happens, you need to know that the Earth follows an orbital plane around the sun called an 'ecliptic', which is basically an imaginary line through the sky that marks the apparent annual path of the sun. The ecliptic is a marker for zodiac constellations. The planets follow a similar orbit to Earth meaning they also stay close to this ecliptic plane. On rare nights our planets can cluster together across this line where they 'parade' across the sky.
NASA scientist Preston Dyches says that we can "enjoy a sweeping view of four bright planets at once".
So what is special about the planetary parade? Well, the next notable planetary alignment of 5 planets won't happen until 2040 and Jonathan O'Callaghan predicts 7 planets aren't meant to align again for another 175 years, however we cannot definitively say. Nasa even comments that, although not exceptionally rare in the grand cosmic scheme of things, it is still definitely one to look out for.
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Here is a crash course in spotting the planetary alignment:
'Go Stargazing' recommends Victoria Park in Bristol to see the stars. Additionally, Leigh Woods is a local hotspot that can be perfect to see the cosmic spectacle. Both places escape the harsh light pollution levels so can be a great place to stargaze and witness the wonders of the night sky.
Look up this winter! No matter how your 2025 has started, I think we can all admire the beauty in cosmic phenomena and the harmony of our solar system.
Featured Image:NASA