A rare “planetary parade” returns to the evening sky this week

A parade of planets is about to take six of Earth’s neighbors into the night sky at once. But it’s not easy to see.

According to NASA, if you have a clear, unobstructed sky looking due west on Saturday, February 28, Saturn’s two inner planets, Venus and Mercury, will be visible in the night sky, and Neptune, Uranus and Jupiter may also be visible.

The window is narrow, and Venus, Mercury, Saturn, and Neptune only appear briefly after sunset. Venus, Mercury, and Saturn should all be visible to the naked eye, but a pair of stargazing binoculars will come in handy. Venus and Mercury are closest to the horizon at dusk, with Saturn visible above them.

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Neptune is right next to Saturn, but you’ll need a 6-inch (15-centimeter) sky-gazing telescope to get a good look at Neptune (even that isn’t possible at dusk). These four planets appear in the sky about 30 minutes after sunset and remain so for about 45 minutes.

After observing Venus, Mercury, Saturn, and Neptune, look for Jupiter in Gemini high in the south. It should be easy to find as it will shine very brightly. The three stars in Orion’s belt are located approximately halfway between the other four planets and Jupiter. This giant planet also appears as a steady whitish light that doesn’t twinkle like a star.

Uranus, Pleiades, total lunar eclipse

The seventh planet, Uranus, is also in the night sky, but is best seen with binoculars or a small telescope. To find it, use Orion’s belt again and follow its three stars, Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, upwards until you reach the shimmering sight of the Pleiades Open Cluster (also known as the “Seven Sisters” or M45). Uranus is located in the constellation Taurus, just below the Pleiades star cluster.

As a bonus, the moon will also appear in the night sky on February 28th, along with another famous star cluster. The giant waxing moon, at about 92% brightness, will approach the Beehive Cluster (also known as M44 and NGC 2632), a bright star cluster of about 1,000 stars located about 577 light-years from our solar system.

When the planetary parade disappears, something perhaps more spectacular will take its place. There will be a total lunar eclipse on March 3rd, when the full “worm moon” will pass through Earth’s dark shadow. The event, also known as the “Blood Moon,” will see the moon’s surface turn a coppery red for 58 minutes, offering the best views of the entire eclipse sequence from the western United States (including Alaska and Hawaii), the Pacific Islands, New Zealand, Australia, and East Asia.