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Upiter and Saturn have appeared closer to each other in the night sky than they have in 800 years in a celestial event that astronomers call the “Great Conjunction.”
The last time the two planets appeared so close and formed that way was in 1623.
The largest planets in the solar system have been slowly approaching in the sky since the summer and looked like a double planet system.
Coinciding with the winter solstice, the conjunction could be seen with the naked eye from anywhere on Earth on Monday.
The planets were seen about one-fifth the width of a full moon early Monday night and appeared low above the horizon.
The once-in-a-lifetime celestial phenomenon will be visible until Christmas Day, the scientists said.
The conjunction is sometimes nicknamed “Christmas Star” or “Star of Bethlehem” for its connection to the Christian nativity story.
In the story, the star guides the wise men to the house of Jesus, which many Christians believe was a miracle.
The conditions will make the two spheres of frozen gas appear closer and more vibrant than at any other time in 800 years.
How close will the two planets appear to be?
About a tenth of a degree away, which is about the thickness of a dime held at arm’s length, NASA said.
In reality, of course, the planets will remain hundreds of millions of miles apart, he said.
The conjunction of the two planets occurs approximately once every 20 years.
But the last time Jupiter and Saturn were this close was in 1623, and that step was not visible from most places on Earth.
The last great visible conjunction occurred long before the telescopes in 1226, in the middle of the construction of the Catholic Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris.
The next Great Conjunction between the two planets, although not so close, will occur in November 2040.
A closer alignment similar to Monday’s will be in March 2080, with the next close conjunction 337 years later, in August 2417.
