The morning sky will make a show worth waking up to.
On Saturday (April 30) and Sunday, Venus and Jupiter will coincide – where they will look as if they are almost touching. The two will be 0.2 degrees apart, although they are actually 690 million kilometers apart in space.
The astronomers will have to wake up around dawn or just before 5 am on Saturday to see the planetary show. As a reward, they will be treated not only with the union of Venus and Jupiter – Mars, but Saturn will also be visible.
The planets are best viewed through binoculars or a telescope, if you have one on hand. Just be sure to use them carefully while the sun rises to avoid damaging your eyes.
After the big coincidence on Saturday, Venus and Jupiter will start to separate again and the star gauges can watch them slowly diverge over the next few days.
All this planetary action coincides with a new moon and a partial solar eclipse. This means that it will be easier to see the planets in the morning sky due to the lack of light from the moon. Unfortunately, the eclipse will not be visible from the Northern Hemisphere. But in the southern hemisphere, nearly 64 percent of the sun’s disk will be hidden behind the moon.
But don’t overshadow too much by the lack of blackout action. On the night between May 4 and 5, Halley’s Comet will bring the Eta Aquaridi meteor shower. The best viewing will be from 3 to 5 in the morning, and observers in the sky will see between 10 and 30 meteors per hour at the peak of the rain. Just don’t try to catch too many winks of sleep or you may miss fast comets as they move across the sky.
So if you wake up early this week, you can pamper yourself with something from this world.
READ MORE: “Direct hit”: The sun serves a powerful solar eruption, can bring aurora for Halloween
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