Every truthful often, aggregate planets successful our star strategy align, producing immoderate of the Earth’s astir awe-inspiring sights. Luckily for the stargazers retired there, this February volition spot a peculiarly uncommon arrangement: the 5 astir disposable planets lining up astatine once.
Throughout February, the 5 brightest planets – Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury and Saturn – volition airy up the sky. In a improvement dubbed the “Great Planet Parade”, they volition besides beryllium joined by Neptune and Uranus (though these are much hard to spot with the bare eye), creating a uncommon 7 satellite line-up.
So what is the champion time to observe this peculiar conjunction? While each 7 planets are acceptable to align connected February 28, according an astronomy adept astatine Space.com, onlookers are successful for a peculiar dainty connected Monday, February 24. This is due to the fact that Mercury and Saturn volition look particularly adjacent together.
Space.com says: “Well, connected Feb. 24, Mercury volition beryllium successful conjunction with Saturn, with the 2 planets appearing comparatively adjacent — conscionable 1.5 degrees apart. This volition beryllium your accidental to implicit the acceptable and accidental you've seen each 5 evening planets astatine once. Mercury volition beryllium positioned to Saturn's close and shining astir 8 times brighter.”
Where tin I spot the planets successful the sky?
Of course, not everyplace volition supply an adjacent presumption of this dazzlingly uncommon planetary performance. Due to the aggravated airy contamination contiguous successful galore municipality centres, you could beryllium missing retired connected the champion view. To help, the question specialists astatine Travelbag person compiled a database of the apical European cities to observe the satellite line-up – based connected a database of the world’s astir fashionable cities and their airy contamination levels.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the champion metropolis successful Europe to witnesser the satellite parade successful Reykjavik, Iceland, boasting a comparatively debased airy contamination people of conscionable 20.28. The state is known for its unspoilt scenery and unsocial earthy phenomena – truthful it makes consciousness it besides has 1 of the world’s astir beauteous skies too.
Other Nordic cities proved beardown contenders, with Helsinki, Finland coming successful 2nd with a airy contamination people of conscionable 23.04, and Stockholm, Sweden coming 3rd with a people of 27.59. However, if you’re successful the UK, nary request to hop connected a flight. Edinburgh besides made it into Europe’s apical 10, with a airy contamination people of 35.61.
The European champion cities to spot the planetary parade successful 2025
1. Reykjavik, Iceland
Light contamination score: 20.28
2. Helsinki, Finland
Light contamination score: 23.04
3. Stockholm, Sweden
Light contamination score: 27.59
4. Vienna, Austria
Light contamination score: 30.05
5. Vilnius, Lithuania
Light contamination score: 30.13
6. Dubrovnik, Croatia
Light contamination score: 32.50
7. Madrid, Spain
Light contamination score: 34.17
8. Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Light contamination score: 34.95
9. Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Light contamination score: 35.61
10. Amsterdam, Netherlands
Light contamination score: 36.16