Planets Aligned: Jupiter, Venus, Saturn And Mars Parade Across AZ Sky

ARIZONA — The Lyrid meteor shower is coming to an end, but there's a new heavenly show to take in. Jupiter, Venus, Saturn and Mars will be aligned and those willing to drag themselves from bed early enough should get a stellar view.

The four planets will be aligned just above the horizon and viewers should be able to easily make them out in the eastern sky with the naked eye through the end of April, according to NASA.

Skies in the Phoenix metro area and in Tucson are expected to be clear through Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Overnight lows in the Valley are forecast in the lower to mid-60s, with lows in the 50s in the Tucson area.

The best time to view the planets will be Saturday morning. The two brightest planets, Jupiter and Venus, have an “ultra-close” conjunction, the space agency said.

The best time to see the planetary parade is about an hour before sunrise. Sunrise is around 5:40 a.m. in Phoenix and Tucson.

The last time Jupiter and Venus have appeared this close together was on Nov. 24, 2019.

“Of course,” NASA explained, “the planets are actually far apart in space, and only appear to move closer, or farther apart, in the sky as our view of them across the solar system changes from month to month.”

This conjunction isn’t as impressive as the grand conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in late 2020, but the planetary lineup is “still really impressive” and will “make for thrilling sights in the morning sky,” NASA said. “So definitely try to catch them if you can!”

While you’re scanning the sky, you may still see a few stray shooting stars from the Lyrids meteor shower, known for producing fireballs with bright dust trails that can last for a few seconds. The monthlong Eta Aquarids meteor shower is also underway. It peaks May 4-5.

The meteor shower favors the Southern Hemisphere, where it produces about 60 meteors an hour, but it's a decent show in the Northern Hemisphere, too, and viewers in this part of the world can expect to see about half that many. Comet Haley is the parent of this meteor shower, which has been observed since ancient times.