Look up to the night sky later this month as five planets will be visible at the same time in what is a pretty rare event! Whether you're an avid astronomer or someone who just glances up at the sky every now and then, we can presumably all agree that the night sky is pretty beautiful. Seeing a shooting star is something that is on a lot of people's bucket lists, as well as watching the northern lights illuminate the night. One thing that those of us who don't own a telescope often presume is that seeing other planets isn't something we're able to achieve - but we can do exactly this later this month. <img class="size-full wp-image-1263200903" src="https://img.vt.co/2023/03/2JKWRA3-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="1738" />[[imagecaption|| Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Uranus will be visible from Earth. Credit: BSIP SA / Alamy]] According to the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-11863785/FIVE-planets-visible-night-sky-end-March-heres-them.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Mail</a>, seeing one or two planets in the sky at once isn't unusual, but seeing five at the same time isn't too common with it previously happening last year and in 2020 and 2016. The event is going to take place on March 28 as Jupiter, Mercury, Uranus, Mars, and Venus will all be visible, though you may need binoculars. Venus will light up the sky from a higher position while Mercury and Jupiter will be visible closer to the horizon. If you glance closer to the moon you should be able to spot Mars, though if you want to find Uranus you'll need some binoculars. It certainly seems like stargazers are in for a real treat at the end of the month, so let us all hope that clouds don't decide to ruin the evening. This isn't the only moment of beauty that falls in March, as earlier this month astronomers were treated to a "<a href="https://vt.co/news/jupiter-and-venus-seen-in-super-rare-cosmic-kiss-last-night">cosmic kiss</a>" that took place between Jupiter and Venus on March 1. According to experts, the space smooch is technically called a conjunction - although that doesn't quite have the same ring to it. The <a href="https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/what-planetary-conjunction" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Royal Museums Greenwich</a> explained that this occurs when "any two astronomical objects (such as asteroids, moons, planets, and stars) appear to be close together in the sky, as observed from Earth." Though it is added that while it appears that the planets are touching, they are actually millions of kilometers away from each other. Jackie Faherty an astronomer at the American Museum of Natural History told <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/03/01/1160382060/look-up-venus-and-jupiter-are-going-in-for-a-nighttime-kiss" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NPR</a> that Jupiter and Venus are actually 400 million miles apart. [[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERswKl8WJZs]] She detailed that as the planets orbit the sun, the inner planets move a lot faster, similar to how an athletics track works. Don't fret if you miss the five planets in the sky later this month, as this year is set to host many planetary events. A Lyrid meteor shower is set to take place from April 15 to 29, and <a href="https://www.space.com/36381-lyrid-meteor-shower-guide.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Space.com</a> explains: "The Lyrids originate from the comet Thatcher, which orbits the sun about every 415 years. This is one of the oldest recorded showers, with observations dating back to 687 B.C.E." This summer will also give stargazers the chance to spot a blue moon, and sitting outside in summer certainly has more appeal than the unpredictable weather that March brings. <h6>Featured image credit: Nemes Laszlo / Alamy</h6>

5 planets in the solar system will all be visible in the night sky at the same time this month

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