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See the rare alignment of 5 planets and the moon in this stunning night sky photo
The rare sight of five bright planets lining up with the moon wowed skywatchers around the world Friday.
Science & Tech
The rare sight of five bright planets lining up with the moon wowed skywatchers around the world Friday, with some gearing up for more this weekend to see a planetary sight that won't happen again until 2040.
Throughout June, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn have lined up from left to right, in their orbital order from the sun, before dawn in the southeastern sky. Early Friday (June 24), the moon joined the planet parade in an awesome sight captured by astrophotographer Wright Dobbs, a meteorologist for the U.S. National Weather Service in Tallahassee, Florida.
"Seeing the night sky is amazing and, knowing the rarity of these alignments, you have to take every opportunity to view and capture it," Dobbs told Space.com in an email after sharing an image of the fivesome from St. Cloud, Florida on Friday. Dobbs is a veteran night sky photographer and you can see more photos on their Facebook page, (opens in new tab) as well as on Twitter (opens in new tab) and Instagram @wrightdobbs (opens in new tab).
The image was shot with a Sony a7ii, and was composed of a three-image panorama with a Sigma 14mm f/1.8 lens. Each image was exposed at ISO 1600, f/6.3, 15 seconds.
"It's certainly not the darkest place I've shot astrophotography from, but I love what the twilight glow added to the display of the planets in the morning sky," Dobbs said.
Other stunning views flowed in from social media.