February 27, 2026
2 min read
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This weekend, six worlds will align in a rare ‘planetary parade’
This weekend offers a chance to see a rare celestial event—Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all aligned in the sky like beads on a string
The planets are aligning. This Saturday is a rare chance to see several of our closest cosmic neighbors in a single sky. Six planets will assemble themselves for a spectacular “planetary parade” that can be seen all over the world—provided you have clear skies.
Mercury, Venus, Saturn and Jupiter will all be visible to the naked eye for between a half-hour and an hour around twilight, appearing in that order stretching upward from the horizon shortly after sunset. To see them, astronomers advise going somewhere high-altitude and cloud-free, since all the visible planets will be relatively low in the western sky. One of the lowest will be Mercury, the smallest planet and a rare sight from Earth. Only Mars will be skipping the planetary performance.
Those with a telescope can even glimpse our two furthest celestial fellows, Neptune and Uranus. The two “ice giants” will be far dimmer, but will also hit their marks on this global, starlit stage.
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The planets all sail about the sun in more or less the same plane, because they all formed from the same disc of swirling gas and dust that was left behind when our sun was born. All their orbits are different, but every few years chance places them all roughly on the same side of the sun. In 2040, there will even be a night where you can view all seven planets in a single sky.
So especially if you’re in the northeast, nature is giving you a perfect way to recover from blizzard-racked weeks indoors. Bundle up, bring a hot beverage, and march out into the evening to get a front-row seat for our planetary neighbors’ spectacular performance.
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