Earthlings at this time can witness the rare phenomenon of planets shining in parallel formation. Here are interesting facts about parallel planets as quoted by us from Science Focus, Friday (24/6/2022):
1. What planets can you see?
There are 5 planets that appear to glow in parallel conditions that can be seen with the naked eye. From east to northeast on the horizon, you can see Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn with the naked eye.
If you have good binoculars or a telescope to see the planets aligned, you might as well see the planet Uranus, which is between Venus and the Moon. However, Uranus is still difficult to see and the sky conditions must be clear to see it.
The moon itself will appear between the planets on June 23 to 25. On June 26, the Moon will begin to shift closer to the horizon and appear to be moving behind the planet formation, before sinking.
2. When can parallel planets be seen?
You have to wake up early to be able to witness this parallel planetary phenomenon, about an hour before dawn. The ideal time to witness it has indeed passed, namely at dawn on June 24.
But don't worry, this phenomenon will still happen again next week on June 28-30 2022, according to researcher from the Center for Space Research, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) Andi Pangerang. Andi said that this parallel planet phenomenon occurred 3 times during June 2022. The first configuration consists of the alignment of Mercury, Venus, Uranus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn on June 4-15 2022. The second configuration consists of the arrangement of Mercury, Venus, Uranus, Mars , Jupiter, Saturn, and the Moon on June 16-27, 2022.
Then, it ends with a configuration with the same arrangement as the first, namely Mercury, Venus, Uranus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn on June 28-30, 2022. So don't miss the last chance next week!
3. How rare is this phenomenon?
It is not uncommon for two or three planets to align in the sky, but sightings of six parallel planets like what is happening today are quite rare. The last time the five planets were seen aligned was in March 2004 aka 18 years ago.
Well, this phenomenon will not happen again until August 2040, aka still 18 years away. At that time, Mercury will be more difficult to see because it is closer to the Sun in the morning sky.
4. What is the impact on Earth?
Are there any harmful effects of this parallel planet phenomenon on Earth? Don't worry, there are no harmful effects for the planet. Even parallel planets in certain formations, besides looking beautiful, can also help NASA to be more precise in flying spacecraft.