Early risers are in for a spectacular show next week, when Jupiter, Venus and Mercury form a planetary lineup in the predawn sky on Sept. 1.
Look above the eastern horizon in the hours preceding dawn on Sept. 1 to find Venus shining among the stars of the constellation Cancer, with Jupiter visible as a bright point of light roughly 20 degrees to the amber planet’s upper right. It’s useful to remember the width of your clenched fist held at arm’s length accounts for roughly 10 degrees of sky.
Mercury, meanwhile, will rise roughly an hour before the sun to form a near-perfect diagonal line with Venus and Jupiter that traces the path of the ecliptic — the narrow plane in Earth’s sky that contains the orbits of all eight solar system planets. The latecomer will swiftly become lost in the glare of the morning sun, so be sure to find a spot with a clear view of the eastern sky to ensure a view of the planetary formation.
The planetary trio will indeed present a spectacular sight to the naked eye, but a telescope with an aperture of 6-inches or more will help reveal the four large Galilean moons surrounding the gas giant Jupiter, and display the moon-like phases of Venus and Mercury.
Celestron NexStar Evolution 925 Computerised Telescope
The Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25 is one of the best telescopes you can buy. Boasting a 9.25-inch aperture and a whole host of accessories, this is top-of-the-range gear. The remote operability means it is easy to track celestial objects from your phone. Add to that a powerful lithium-ion battery, allowing for ten hours of uninterrupted stargazing.
As always, the greatest care must be taken to never point a telescope or binoculars in the direction of the rising sun — particularly when viewing Mercury, which never strays far from the horizon — as doing so will permanently damage your eyesight.
Stargazers interested in seeing the planets for themselves should read our guides detailing the best telescopes and binoculars for exploring the post-sunset sky. Photographers looking to upgrade their equipment ahead of the next big skywatching event should also check out our roundups of the best cameras and lenses for astrophotography.
Editor’s Note: If you capture an image of Mercury with Venus and Jupiter and want to share it with Space.com’s readers, please send your photo(s), comments, name and the location of your shoot to spacephotos@space.com.