RARE 5 planet alignment of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn will see a SECRET guest joining in

The rare 5 planet alignment comes into even better view next week as Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn will shine brighter in the morning sky. And they will be joined by a secret celestial body. Check who it is and when to watch it.

This rare 5 planet alignment of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will not be visible to naked eyes for decades. Make sure you do not miss it next week. (Representative Image) (Pixabay)

The rare cosmic parade is set to get even crazier next week. To the delight of skywatchers, the rare five planet alignment of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn will also be joined by another secret participant to make it one of the rarest astronomical phenomena. And the secret participant is none other than our Moon. With these six celestial bodies parading in a line, this sight will be one to behold for generations. The last time something like this happened was in 1864! So, make sure to not miss this extremely rare event. Know the details as well as when and how to watch. Read on.

When to watch the rare planet alignment of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and Moon

What makes this alignment unique is that the planets will appear in the sky in the same order as they are in their respective orbits around the Sun. This spectacular lineup can be viewed between June 23 to June 25, however the best view will be in the early hours of June 24. To watch them in the sky, you will have to look towards the east and then move in the northeast direction to see all the celestial bodies line up.

But all the different planets will light up the sky at different times. The first appearance will be of Saturn which will be around midnight. The planet will appear in a bright yellow glow. Next to join the parade will be Jupiter, Mars and Venus. They will rise at 1:30 AM, 2:00 AM and 3:30 AM respectively. Mercury will be the latecomer in the group and join the formation about 30-40 minutes before dawn. The Moon will, of course, be there throughout the night and occupy the space between Venus and Mars.

Where and how to watch the rare planet alignment

The best part about this planetary alignment is that almost everyone can get a good view right from their location. While not as bright and stunning, places with light pollution will also get to watch this in the sky. You just need to make sure to wake up about 30 minutes before sunrise to watch this spectacle. Do make sure to check the sunrise time on June 24. If you want a close-up view of the event, get a pair of binoculars or a telescope to get up and close with the planets. Alternatively, you can check out multiple live streams on YouTube to watch the event.