Jupiter and Venus conjunction: How and when to watch the phenomenon tonight
The largest and the brightest planets in our solar system will appear incredibly close in the night sky on Wednesday evening.
Tonight marks the first night of the meteorological spring and star-gazers will be able to see an astronomical phenomenon known as ‘conjugation’.
On Wednesday evening Jupiter and Venus will appear incredibly close to each other in the night sky, just half a degree apart from one another. Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and Venus the brightest, so the spectacle should be pretty impressive for those lucky enough to catch a glimpse.
NASA explains that conjugations are fairly common in our solar system because “the planets orbit around the Sun in approximately the same plane - the ecliptic plane - and thus trace similar paths across our sky”.
However while they will appear very close from our perspective on Earth, the planets are still 400 million miles apart.
How to see the Jupiter and Venus conjugation
Often astronomical phenomena are only faintly visible to the naked eye, or require telescopes to be seen at all. However the size and the brightness of the plants involved means that there should be pretty good visibility anywhere with clear skies on Wednesday evening.
The space agency says that Jupiter and Venus will be visible in the western sky above the horizon at around 6:58pm ET. This will be just as the evening twilights comes to an end on the East Coast.
Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the UK Royal Astronomical Society, explains that the conjugation has no particular astronomical significance, but the closeness of the two planets should create a fascinating spectacle.
If you want to get a good view of the planets on Wednesday evening it is recommended that you try to find a vantage point on high ground to avoid being blocked by buildings. Jupiter and Venus will be low-lying on the horizon at the time when they are brightest.
If you are unable to head out to view the spectacle, Gianluca Masi of the Bellatrix Astronomical Observatory has organised a live feed broadcast for Wednesday evening to document “the kiss between Venus and Jupiter”.