During a short period once the sun sets, almost half the solar system may share the same piece of sky. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as a “planetary parade”: several planets rising above the horizon simultaneously, in a smooth arc and not a ruler-strauss line.
On the 28 th of February, six planets, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, are all in the evening sky of those who are in the Northern Hemisphere. This window is immediately the Sun has gone down the horizon, yet now there is still twilight in the western sky, and the most lowly planets are not yet out of sight. The conjunction happens a few days before the final full lunar eclipse until New Year Eve of 2028, and full moon glow might also warm the targets nearer to the sun.
It is orbital geometry that causes the scene to appear “lined up.” The planets revolve around the Sun in a similar plane, and on earth the plane becomes the ecliptic an apparent path through the air in which the Moon and the planets usually move. In a yardage or on a street, it will be a swing of the arm, and not a gambling of the eye over the whole dome above.
The time of the day is more important than the calendar date. The farthest side of a parade is the most squeezed, and it is therefore in the low west, where it is essential that the viewer has a clear horizon, and a fairly strict rule, not to use optics until the Sun is completely set. During the first hour of the sunset, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, and Neptune are close to the horizon and start to set rapidly. Jupiter and Uranus are then up higher and stay in place when the lower group disappears into fog and tree tops.
According to a note written by outreach specialist Chelsea Gohd of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the outlook of the sky is as follows: Saturn will be closer to the ground, Venus and Mercury will be elevated in the sky, and Jupiter will be high in the sky next to the Moon, with Uranus and Neptune being close to the sky next to Saturn, but being more difficult to see. It is a scheme of reach: begin with the brightest lighthouses, and proceed to the less vivid spots of light.
Jupiter is the stabilizer to most first time observers. It is brighter than Sirius by more than twice and can be seen early in the evening, even where the light pollution is erasing the stars. The other indisputable sign, a bright planet at nightfall in the west, is identified as Venus.
The challenge planets need means. Uranus and Neptune typically require a binocular or telescope, and Neptune specifically cannot be viewed without the use of a magnification lens. The two may appear like mere stars even when optics make them reachable, and hence a star chart or a stargazing app will be used to assure the field. The dim objects are also aided by the darker skies: a flight out of the city lights, and an observation on a plain western horizon, may make the difference between the parade seeming a procession of planets or only two bright worlds and a few guesses.
