Although these planet orientations have no effect on Earth, they can provide interesting nights for stargazers who know what to look out for. From April, the northern hemisphere will be treated with an orientation of up to five planets and the moon, all of which are visible together. The next point at which the eight planets will be aligned (Pluto is now considered a dwarf planet) will take place on May 6, 2492. Although these planet orientations have no effect on Earth, they can make for interesting nights for stargazers who know what to look for. The next point at which the eight planets will be aligned (Pluto is now considered a dwarf planet) will occur on May 6, 2492. The last time they even appeared in the same part of heaven was over 1,000 years ago, in 949 AD, and they will only make it again.
Another planetary alignment will take place on April 20, when Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus will form a near perfect line in the sky before dawn.
Will the planets align in 2021?
Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and, along with some of its larger moons, is a great sight to behold. Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn will all appear in almost perfect alignment, while the nearby crescent moon will frame the planetary trio. Each planet will appear as a luminous spot, with Mercury being the weakest point and Jupiter the brightest spot that is easy to see with the naked eye. But it will rise higher above sunrise throughout the month and be in the eastern pre-dawn sky along a regularly spaced line of planets — with Venus, Saturn and Mars — by the middle of the month.
Although Saturn is the weakest planet among the three, it can be easily spotted at dusk in December.
What happens when the planets are all aligned?
Should such an alignment ever occur, gravitational forces would reportedly not influence the Earth in any meaningful way. That’s 243 Earth days to rotate once — the longest rotation of any planet in the solar system — and only 224.7 Earth days to complete an orbit of the Sun. Very oblique collisions do not disturb the planets at all and both would continue on almost the same orbits without losing mass. The truth is that the gravitational forces of the planets on Earth are so weak that they have no significant impact on life on earth.
The inner planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, while the outer planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
When was the last planetary alignment?
If you want to check the timing of planet alignment for your location and easily locate planets on the dome of the sky, consult the Star Walk 2 star observation guide or use the astronomy tool Sky Tonight. Observers from the southern hemisphere will be able to see better again: The planets there will rise earlier and climb much higher. Another planetary alignment will take place on April 20, when Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus will form a near perfect line in the sky before dawn. NASA launched the Voyager spacecraft in 1977 to take advantage of a rare alignment between the outer four planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) that would not take place for another 175 years.
All the planets in the solar system — Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and the dwarf planet Pluto — lined up on one side of the sun at the same time.
