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Today’s animated Google Doodle showcases Great Conjunction and Winter Solstice.
Google Doodle today observes the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year, a phenomenon that occurs when one of the Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt away from the sun.
The word “solstice” originated from the Latin solstitium which means “the sun stands still.” In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice takes place between December 19 and 23. This year it’s December 21st.
After the winter solstice, the days start to get longer and the nights shorter for people in the Northern Hemisphere. The reverse phenomenon occurs for people in the southern hemisphere.
This year’s winter solstice coincides with another special astronomical event: the “Great Conjunction” of Jupiter and Saturn.
On Monday night, Jupiter and Saturn will be in a rare planetary alignment, appearing closer together in the evening sky in nearly 800 years. They won’t appear that close until 2080.
Google’s animated Doodle shows the Great Conjunction, in which Saturn and Jupiter meet to quickly collide five, and the Winter Solstice as the Earth literally “covered in snow” observing the other two planets.
The “Great Conjunction” event of Jupiter and Saturn is also known as the “Christmas Star of 2020”.
According to NASA, “the two planets will appear only one tenth of a degree apart” and such an event will not occur again for the next 60 years, that is, until 2080.
The celestial spectacle will take place after nearly 400 years “since the planets passed so close to each other in the sky, and almost 800 years since the alignment of Saturn and Jupiter occurred at night,” says NASA.
Skywatchers, a once-in-a-lifetime gift awaits you! Jupiter and Saturn are doing a planetary dance that will result in the Great Conjunction on December 21, just after sunset. Discover:
???? When and where to look up
???? How to photograph the conjunctionVisit: https://t.co/SdQSLex2Expic.twitter.com/DkaB5XyO9B
– NASA (@NASA) December 20, 2020
Astronomers say that conjunctions between the two largest planets in our solar system are not particularly rare. Jupiter passes its neighbor Saturn in their respective turns around the sun every 20 years. But today’s celestial event is especially close: Jupiter and Saturn will be only one-tenth of a degree apart from our perspective, or about one-fifth the width of a full moon. And if the weather permits, the planets should be easily visible around the world shortly after sunset.
The planets will approach comparably close on March 15, 2080. On the night of December 21, their physical distance will be around 735 million kilometers, MP Birla planetarium director Debi Prasad Duari said in a statement.
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