The two bright planets will be in closest conjunction in the evening sky after 367 years.
Sky watchers in the city are preparing to see a rare sight in the night sky on December 21, when two bright planets, Jupiter and Saturn, become closely linked after 367 years, the first such event since 1623 and almost 800 years after the alignment. Saturn and Jupiter occurred at night. The planets will be separated by only 0.1 degrees.
Look up into the sky after sunset and the brightest star you will see is Jupiter. Saturn will be a little weaker and appear a little higher, “says Adithya DV, a Chennai star photographer who hopes to click the conjunction. He has previously photographed comets, globular star clusters, the Milky Way and other celestial conjunctions from the rooftop of his home in T Nagar. “I also managed to click on a solar eclipse in Kotagiri, and a lunar eclipse and meteor showers in the United States,” he adds.
The astronomical extravagance of Jupiter catching up with Saturn will be easily visible, and one can see it from the balcony or terrace. “If you have binoculars or a small telescope, you can also see the four big moons of Jupiter and they can be the rings of Saturn. Hope the sky is clear. I want to find a high place and an interesting close-up for photography, ”he says.
While the Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions occur every 20 years, the 2020 grand conjunction on December 21 will be the closest since 1623 and the closest observable since 1226. “This extra-close conjunction won’t coincide again until 2080,” he says. Adithya.
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