This Weekend See Rare Triple Conjunction In Night Sky
If you were like me and got all excited back in December to see the 'Christmas Star', (a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn) only to be disappointed because clouds covered the skies at night, then here's an even better opportunity to see something way cooler! According to NASA, Jupiter, Saturn, and Mercury will experience a triple conjunction, where the three planets will be within a few degrees of one another.
According to Travel + Leisure, the best time to view is "just after sunset on Saturday, Jan. 9, Sunday, Jan. 10 and Monday, Jan. 11, 2021. On Saturday and Sunday, the three planets will form a small triangle in the fading light, while on Monday you'll find Mercury next to Jupiter. However, it's not going to be easy to see because it will take place very low on the west-southwest horizon. The best time to look will be about 30 minutes after sunset when it will be dark enough to see the planets shine."
You may want to have a pair of binoculars handy for better viewing and be aware that Jupiter will be the easiest to spot since it's the brightest of the three planets in the sky.
Need help before you get started? NASA has a great video for you to check out that talks about what you can see this month in the night sky...
Now let's hope the weekend weather cooperates! At this time, The National Weather Service in Binghamton has some promising weather for nighttime celestial viewing for Otsego County with partly cloudy skies forecasted for tonight and Saturday night. Let's hope the skies part enough to see the conjunction!
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