5 planets align for first time in a decade
MANILA, Philippines - Ready to witness another celestial spectacle?
For the first time since January 2005, five planets will be visible at once from earth, and you don't need a telescope to perfectly spot them.
Five planets line up in the A.M. sky for 1st time in a decade - https://t.co/Fi2aUrDUsn #astronomy #skywatching pic.twitter.com/3rbDhbJ7hO
— Scott Sutherland (@ScottWx_TWN) January 19, 2016
According to reports, people can get a look of Mercury, Mars, Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter or the "naked-eye planets," starting January 20 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time until March 3.
In the advisory of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), it was mentioned that the conjunction has started last January 1, with four of the five planets already aligning.
"Starting January 1, at 5:00 a.m., a conjunction of four (4) planets (Jupiter, Mars, Venus and Saturn) will be observed above the east southeastern horizon," the advisory said.
"Mercury joins the group of planets during the middle of the month making it at a very rare and spectacular display of planetary conjunctions since 2005," it added.
The planets can be seen all at once 45 minutes before sunrise in a diagonal line, from anywhere around the world. Jupiter rises first, in the evening hours, followed by Mars after midnight and then Saturn, Venus and Mercury.
American magazine Sky & Telescope notes however that Mercury, because of its low position near the horizon and its faint light, will be difficult to see after the first week of February.
The rare conjunction, according to Earthsky.com has something to do with the planets' disks.
"These planets are easily seen in our sky because their disks reflect sunlight, and these relatively nearby worlds tend to shine with a steadier light than the distant, twinkling stars," it said.
The alignment has no astronomical significance other than that it is rare and it will not happen again in the next 24 years.
For tips on how you can easily view the planets, you may visit these websites: Astronomy.com, Earthsky.org, Skyandtelescope.com
