Saturn and Jupiter Conjunction 2020

The 'Great Conjunction' of Saturn and Jupiter on the Winter Solstice

**Dec 21, 2020**

Everything you need to know about this year's great conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter and how to view it

Image source- Google

Saturn and Jupiter have never been this close in about 400 years and the last time the two giants were this close was all the way back in 1623. But how close are the planets going to be?  They're going to be just 0.1 degrees apart from each other!! So yeah, if you think about it, it's a pretty big deal for all the astronomers and star gazers out there. And maybe 2020 wasn't such a bad stretch after all, well at least not for those unwavering star gazers we just mentioned. 

The planet giants, Jupiter and Saturn will be the closest on December 21st, 2020, and will be visible right after the sun sets and will remain that way for a short time. 

By Adam Mescher- Unsplash

They can be seen on the dome of the sky, and it won't be challenging to spot them as they would appear as the brightest single point in the sky, as viewed with the naked eye. 

Some also noted that this event may appear as an "elongated bright star" in the sky. Even though the conjunction of the two planets repeats every 20 years, the planets are not going to be close to this approximation till the year 2080, according to NASA. 

As for those who plan on viewing the planets with telescopes, both Saturn's rings, as well as Jupiter's moons, will be visible with high magnification. The bright conjunction, also now known as the 'Christmas Star', can be viewed even in the backdrop of a city although a spot with a lot less light pollution would be better. 

Click here to install the Star Tracker app to help with your star gazing guidance with a live sky map.

Happy star-gazing !!!