Soon we will be able to see the great opposition of Jupiter, which means that the largest planet in the solar system will be much brighter and clearer than usual. In addition, the last time Jupiter was very close to our planet was 59 years ago. We advise when and how to watch this unique spectacle.
On Monday, September 26 at about 20:10 CET, Jupiter will be in stark opposition to the Sun. This means an alignment where Earth is exactly between the Sun and another planet, in this case Jupiter. In addition, the corresponding upper planet is close to perihelion in its orbit. This means that it is closer than usual to the ground. In this case it will be approximately 591.30 million km.
Jupiter’s great opposition
Jupiter’s opposition occurs every 13 months, but significant opposition occurs less frequently. Biggest planet for the last time Solar System It was very close to our planet almost 60 years ago, in 1963. Another such close approach will occur only 12 years from now – October 2, 2034, and another – October 7, 2046. However, it is worth noting that the planet will be far away A bit off the ground on a Monday evening. In 2034, the distance between the planets will be 591.37 million km, and in 2046 – 591.55 million km.
In favorable weather conditions, the large opposition of Jupiter should be visible with the naked eye. The planet will be in the constellation Pisces, so look east. On this day, it will be one of the brightest objects in the night sky (after the Moon and Venus), so it will not be difficult to find it.
According to NASA experts, including Adam Kobelsky, an astrophysicist from the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, with good binoculars, you’ll be able to see at least Jupiter’s central band, as well as three or four Galilean moons and The Great Red Spot.
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Karolina Modzilowska, journalist at Wirtualna Polska
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