On December 21, 2020 photographers took stunning photos of the Great Conjunction between Jupiter and Saturn–aka the Christmas Star. In 1610, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei discovered both the four moons of Jupiter — Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto — and the rings of Saturn. Event; Event Report; Illustration of the crescent Moon passing near the planets in mid-December, from EarthSky. On December 21st, 2020 Jupiter is conjunct Saturn at 0° Aquarius. View our Privacy Policy. "Conjunctions like this could happen on any day of the year, depending on where the planets are in their orbits," said Throop. Then, without moving the telescope, you can slightly shift your gaze to Saturn and its magnificent rings. Think the Perseids are the only shower worth watching? Astronomers are calling it the Great Conjunction of 2020. Venus was once more Earth-like, but climate change made it uninhabitable, Infinity & Beyond — Episode 9: Saturn's rings, Infinity & Beyond — Episode 8: Black holes 101, By Jove! On Monday, December 21, 2020, Jupiter and Saturn reached their closest conjunction since the 17th century, but the most easily seen since the 13th century. Seekers of celestial significance will likely see the whole event as some sort of sign related to the kind of year 2020 has been. Throughout the month, the gas giants will be hard to miss. Jakes on keeping Christmas traditions alive amid pandemic, California Privacy/Information We Collect. Jupiter and Saturn will be so close today that they will appear to form a "double planet." They will look like two points of light in the sky. Tamalpais on December 21, 2020 in Larkspur, California. Why Is January 1 the beginning of a new year? The bright moon is in Taurus. In fact, Jupiter and Saturn will be so close that you will be able to fit them both in the same telescopic field of view. Here's how to see the incredible spectacle, which hasn't happened in 800 years. Such a spectacular great conjunction, as the planetary alignment has come to be known, hasn't occurred in nearly 800 years. by Jeffrey L. Hunt. Not long after, in 1623, the two planets were spotted aligning for the first time. And two or more planets come together relatively frequently. By mid-month, they’ll be just one Moon-width apart. And hopefully, it makes us all feel a bit closer and more connected to the outer planets, even if the pandemic has us feeling farther apart than ever before. In December 2020, the two planets will appear the closest as seen from Earth since 1623. Copyright © 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. As you enjoy the show this month, keep in mind that Jupiter appears brighter because it’s bigger and closer than Saturn. When their orbits align every 20 years, Jupiter and Saturn get extremely close to one another. On December 21, 2020, in a close conjunction, Jupiter passes Saturn in the evening sky This is known as a Great Conjunction.. Look toward the southwest about one hour after sunset. "The date of the conjunction is determined by the positions of Jupiter, Saturn, and the Earth in their paths around the Sun, while the date of the solstice is determined by the tilt of Earth's axis. View our Privacy Policy. However, while they may appear from Earth to be very, very close, in reality, they are still hundreds of millions of miles apart. Nor will he turn power over to Pence. We don’t have to worry about that this time. 2020 Jupiter-Saturn become one object(Dec. 21) - Viewing guides. December 21, 2020 / 8:13 AM On 21 December 2020 the closest giant planetary 'kiss' since 1623 will see gas giant planets Jupiter and Saturn just 0.01º apart. Trump will not resign. Beginning at 7 P.M. EST on December 21, Lowell astronomers and educators will share spectacular live views of Jupiter and Saturn through observatory telescopes while discussing the nature of conjunctions. / CBS News. For the last 200 years, the Great Conjunction has occurred almost always in earth signs, but now, on December 21, 2020, both Jupiter and Saturn will align in the air sign of Aquarius. Explore the wonders of the universe from the comforts of your home with unique & exclusive items from Space & Beyond Box. The Jupiter-Saturn conjunction ends the previous 200 year Earth cycle that brought us banknotes, capitalism, corporations, fossil fuels, and the industrial world. That close approach in our sky occurred relatively near the Sun, which made it hard to observe. On December 16, the Moon will sit just 5 degrees away from the pair, offering a handy comparison. The event is observable from anywhere on Earth, provided the sky is clear. But what is the Great Conjunction and how can I watch … The two planets will appear so close together that they'll almost look like one object. Photograph by CMarcos del Mazo, Alamy Live News ... Jupiter-Saturn pairings occur about once every 20 … Sophie Lewis is a social media producer and trending writer for CBS News, focusing on space and climate change. Astronomers have attempted to link the star to several rare celestial events — including a comet, a supernova and a conjunction. more from Astronomy's weekly email newsletter. Monday, 12/21/2020. If you’ve been watching Jupiter and Saturn come close to each other for much of 2020, it’s soon time to say goodbye – though only after a “triple conjunction” with Mercury. In an event dubbed a great conjunction, Jupiter and Saturn, the two biggest planets in our solar system, will appear very close to … So close, that a "pinkie finger at arm's length will easily cover both planets in the sky," NASA said. They’ll reach greatest conjunction on December 21. The Virtual Telescope Project in Rome will be showing the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction on December 21, 2020, starting at 16:00 UTC; translate UTC to your time. Mon 21 Dec 2020 23.44 EST Jupiter (L) and Saturn are pictured during the closest visible conjunction of the two planets in 400 years, in La Linea de la Concepcion, southern Spain. Saturn and Jupiter are already visible in December's sky; the two planets have been moving closer to each other for much of 2020. The last great conjunction this … This will be the "greatest" great conjunction for the next 60 years, until 2080. Through the entirety of December, skywatchers will easily be able to spot the two planets with the naked eye. Dimmer Saturn is immediately to the Giant Planet’s upper right. Receive news, sky-event information, observing tips, and The event coincidentally aligns with the December solstice, marking the shortest day of the year in the Northern hemisphere. During the event, Jupiter and Saturn will sit just 0.1 degrees apart, or a mere one-fifth the width of the Moon. On December 21, 2020 Jupiter and Saturn will be only 0.1 degree apart, which is just 1/5 of a full moon diameter! December 27, 2020: Jupiter and Saturn appear lower in the southwest, less than a week after the Great Conjunction. But skywatchers should have a clearer view of the celestial event this time around. Arecibo is dead. Though not perfect, your hand (with your arm fully outstretched) is a great tool for estimating angles in the night sky. Should we build its replacement on the Moon? First published on December 3, 2020 / 12:16 PM. In … To learn more about when and where to look up to see the conjunction, Throop will be live on NASA's website to answer questions on Thursday afternoon. The word "conjunction" is used by astronomers to describe the meeting of objects in our night sky, and the great conjunction occurs between the two largest planets in our solar system: Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiter and Saturn will form rare "Christmas Star" on winter solstice. By signing up you may also receive reader surveys and occasional special offers. You can watch a livestream of the Great Conjunction of 2020 below, courtesy of Lowell Observatory. On December 21, Jupiter and Saturn will have a "Great Conjunction" in Earth's night sky. However, having two bright planets like Jupiter and Saturn pair up is extremely rare. Jupiter orbits the sun every 12 years, while Saturn's orbit takes 30 years, so every few decades Jupiter laps Saturn, according to NASA. Jupiter and Saturn meet every 20 years, but on Dec. 21 they will be just 0.1° apart — 1/5 of a full moon diameter. Man shown with feet on Nancy Pelosi's desk arrested, West Virginia lawmaker faces federal charges in Capitol siege, Biden preparing to accelerate distribution of COVID-19 vaccine, Google suspends Parler for failure to moderate violent posts, Trump is first president in 152 years to skip successor's inauguration, 2 planets to meet in rare "great conjunction". The solstice is the longest night of the year, so this rare coincidence will give people a great chance to go outside and see the solar system.". "The further north a viewer is, the less time they'll have to catch a glimpse of the conjunction before the planets sink below the horizon," Hartigan said. On December 21 — coincidentally the winter solstice — the two largest planets in our solar system will appear to almost merge in Earth’s night sky. Saturn will appear slightly above and to the left of Jupiter, and will even look as close to the planet as some of its own moons, visible with binoculars or a telescope. This is the beginning of a new era! Jupiter shines brighter than any star in the sky at magnitude -2.0, while Saturn is dimmer at magnitude 0.6 — though the Ringed Planet is still quite bright. However, while they may appear from Earth to be very, very close, in reality, they are still hundreds of millions of miles apart. Jupiter (left) and Saturn appear about one-tenth of a degree apart during an astronomical event known as a Great Conjunction above Mt. Hartigan said that, following that conjunction, the duo won't make such a close approach until sometime after the year 2400. On Dec 21st Jupiter-Saturn great conjunction may appear like a Christmas Star — Bob Redell (@BobNBC) December 22, 2020 @BobNBC While Jupiter will pass Saturn every 20 years, the last the gas planets appeared as together … As Jupiter and Saturn align in Aquarius it is going to kickstart a new era. But they rarely get this close. "You'd have to go all the way back to just before dawn on March 4, 1226, to see a closer alignment between these objects visible in the night sky.". Saturn pairs up with Jupiter to create "Christmas Star" on winter solstice, Plan a family 'staycation' exploring the night sky. "Alignments between these two planets are rather rare, occurring once every 20 years or so, but this conjunction is exceptionally rare because of how close the planets will appear to one another," Rice University astronomer Patrick Hartigan said in a statement. This December, Jupiter and Saturn will put on a show for skygazers that hasn't been seen in roughly 800 years.