5 planets to form rare alignment in the sky this weekend

Five planets are set to align this weekend, giving skywatchers the rare opportunity to see Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn with the naked eye.

Five planets will be visible in the predawn sky this weekend, offering an opportunity for sky watchers to see a rare alignment of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn with the naked eye.

Beginning Friday and lasting through this month, the five planets will appear strung across the eastern horizon before sunrise. The parade of planets will be aligned in order of their distance from the sun, with Mercury, closest to the star, appearing lowest on the horizon and Saturn highest in the night sky.

For the best views, sky watchers in the Northern Hemisphere should head outside roughly 30 minutes before sunrise and choose a spot with unobstructed views of the eastern and southeastern horizon.

The same five planets are viewable before sunrise in the Southern Hemisphere, but stargazers there should stake out a location with unobstructed views of the eastern and northeastern horizon, instead.

If conditions are clear, the planets should be bright enough to see them with the naked eye, though Mercury will be faintest early in the month and thus trickiest to spot without binoculars.

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/five-planets-alignment-rare-june-weekend-rcna31830

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