Summer has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere, and half of the solar system wants to join in the fun. Those who work the red-eye shift will be able to see five planets line up in the predawn sky for the rest of June: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Surprisingly, the planets will appear in the order of their distance from the sun, with Mercury visible closest to the horizon and the other planets arcing neatly across the southern and eastern sky.
The Earth's moon will also join the planetary parade from Thursday (June 23) to Saturday (June 25), creating an extremely rare procession of celestial bodies.A planetary alignment like this hasn't happened since March 5, 1864 — 158 years ago, according to Live Science's sister site Space.com.
This five-planet alignment has been visible for much of June, but the view improves significantly in the last few weeks of the month, according to Space.com. Saturn becomes visible to the naked eye shortly after midnight, followed by Jupiter, Mars, and Venus over the next few hours. Mercury finally joins the party about 30 minutes before sunrise, completing the epic alignment.
A small crescent moon will sneak between Venus and Mars from June 23 to June 25, as if standing in for Earth in the predawn planetary lineup.
According to NPR, stargazers should find a location with a clear view of the horizon toward the east to get the best view of the alignment. Binoculars or a telescope are advised. If you miss the alignment this year, you won't be able to see the five planets line up in sequential order again until 2040, according to NPR.
According to NASA, the planets will gradually begin to separate after June, with Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus becoming more spread out in the sky. Venus and Saturn will no longer be visible to most observers in the morning hours by September, so catch them while you can.
You will also be able to see Uranus and Neptune as well, but you will need a telescope to see these remaining 2 planets.