For a brief period on 30 April, Venus and Jupiter will appear to be touching despite being millions of kilometres apart. The fleeting conjunction will last only a matter of hours but conditions are good this year for observing the annual occurrence.
By NASA's definition, a conjunction is when two planets look as if they are touching from the Earth's point of view. "Venus and Jupiter are typically the two brightest planets in the sky, so they can put on quite a show when they are in close conjunction. It is a beautiful sight and easy for everyone to see," said Patrick Hartigan, professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University in Houston to CNN.
How to see the conjunction
Jupiter and Venus will be visible to the naked eye in the early hours of 1 May. From the northern hemisphere, observers should look to the southeast of the horizon to see them. From the southern hemisphere, the planets will appear above the horizon to the east.
It will be easier to see the planets as there will the moon will be receding in the nights leading up to the conjunction. On the night of the 30 April, there will be a new moon so the moon will be less visible than on other nights.
The last time the two planets found themselves so close together was in 2016, but they were too close to the sun to be clearly visible.
