Jupiter and Venus are set to light up the sky tonight and can be seen from anywhere in Ireland with the naked eye.
The two brightest planets will appear to be closer together than usual. However, they are not about to collide, it is only an illusion by the line-of-sight. Hundreds of millions of kilometres of space separate these planets. Venus is almost 90 million kilometres from Earth and Jupiter is 900 million.
Robin Scagell, vice president of the Society for Popular Astronomy said: “The spectacle of the two brightest planets so close together is beautiful and unusual. Many people will wonder what they are seeing, but it’s just a natural coincidence”.
“Jupiter will appear almost directly above Venus, but the pair will also make a striking sight for an evening or two either side”.
“It’s a beautiful sight and one everyone can enjoy. It’s unusual for two such bright planets to be so close, particularly in the midsummer evening sky”.
“The time you should look out is about 10:30 to 11 pm. The farther north, the later the time because it gets darker later”.
After tomorrow they will start to go their separate ways, with Venus below Jupiter.
Astronomy Ireland says that enthusiasts will be able to see both the discs of Venus and Jupiter in the same field of view, which is an extremely rare sight that wont be seen for another 107 years.