Are six planets really going to be “aligned” in the sky on June 3?

A parade of planets, really? For several days, several specialized sites have been relaying the information according to which a “alignment of planets” will be visible in the sky on Monday, June 3. “In the early morning, six planets – Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune – will line up in the sky. Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn can be seen with the naked eye, but you will need a telescope or powerful binoculars to see Neptune and Uranus”, says for example the site Starwalk.space, an application for observing space from your smartphone. But the phenomenon is actually more complex. As noted by the American magazine ForbesStarwalk bases its information on what can be seen from its app, not actually in the sky.

“People imagine an alignment, but what will actually happen is that the six planets will all be on the same side of the Sun, due to their rotation. This happens at least every two years”explains Eric Lagadec,strophysicist at the Côte d’Azur Observatory, at franceinfo. The specialist published a series of messages on the social network X to help visualize the real positioning of the planets.

In fact, at the beginning of June, the planets of the solar system will be like this. It’s a bit more of a mess, huh? ©theplanetstoday pic.twitter.com/nNHu6Af7Xm

— Eric Lagadec✨🌍 (@EricLagadec) May 24, 2024

As the astrophysicist details on X and with franceinfo, the six planets are always positioned in the same way in relation to each other, since they “all orbit in the same plane”given that they “are formed in a disk around the sun”. They follow what is called the ecliptic, their apparent trajectory in the sky, which gives them this aligned appearance.

If you look at these planets, they seem to form a beautiful line… and they are where you saw the sun pass, and the Moon also passes the same place! They follow what is called the ecliptic. pic.twitter.com/y2egOFKU9F

— Eric Lagadec✨🌍 (@EricLagadec) May 24, 2024

The fact that they are on the same side of the Sun should still make it possible to admire some of them with the naked eye, at dawn.

“The planets very close to the star will rise very shortly before it (5:54 a.m. in Paris), like Jupiter and Mercury, so they will be difficult to see”underlines Eric Lagadec. “We will see Mars and Saturn on the other hand”he adds, believing that “It’s always worth getting up and looking at the sky”. For those who are unable to attend on June 3, “this will also be visible the days before and after”reassures the specialist.

For Uranus and Saturn, “you will need a huge telescope and a lot of patience”affirms for his part Forbes. And those who sacrifice their sleep to see the alignment will not be totally disappointed, adds the American site. Indeed, a magnificent crescent moon will also be visible near Mars and Saturn between May 31 and June 2.