Planetary parade: See 6 planets in September sky
Get your telescope ready for the best arrangement of planets in 2024 as Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will be visible at the same time before sunrise.
There was a time when Pluto was still a planet, until 2006. The International Astronomical Union created three conditions required to constitute a planet, which demoted Pluto into a dwarf planet.
Early risers will be treated to a celestial spectacle during the first two weeks of September as six planets will be visible at the same time although a telescope will be needed to see the entire event.
Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Saturn will be spread across the sky from east to west about 30 minutes before sunrise, local time.
A sky chart showing where Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune and Saturn will appear in the early morning sky during the first part of September. (AccuWeather)
A telescope is necessary to see the planetary procession as Uranus and Neptune are too dim to see with the naked eye. Both will be close to brighter planets, making them easier to find.
Jupiter will be the key to finding Uranus as the two will be side by side high in the southern sky. Meanwhile, Neptune will appear above and to the left of Saturn and will appear blue amid a backdrop of white stars in the western sky.
Mercury, while bright enough to see without a telescope, can still be tricky to spot as it will be low in the eastern sky and could be difficult to pick out as the morning light grows brighter leading up to sunrise.
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The upcoming event will be much more impressive than the planetary alignment of the same six planets that was highly anticipated in late May but ultimately left stargazers disappointed. Social media was abuzz about the six planets aligning in the pre-dawn sky, but in reality, Jupiter, Mercury and Uranus were too close to the sun to see. Folks who woke up early could only see half the show, provided they had a telescope to spot Neptune between Mars and Saturn.
Since September's alignment lasts for two weeks, stargazers have the luxury of checking the AccuWeather forecast and choosing a morning with the best cloud conditions to wake up early to see the six planets.
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