(8-10-24) On August 14, 2024, Jupiter and Mars will appear to almost touch in the sky…an illusion caused by a planetary alignment. The next time Jupiter and Mars appear this close will be December 2033.

Photos provided by NASA, shows Jupiter pictured on April 3, 2017, left, and Mars pictured on Aug. 26, 2003, right.

The two planets are getting closer and closer to each other in the early morning sky. On August 14, 2024, reddish Mars will pass bright Jupiter in an event known as a conjunction.

Although the planets will appear to be very close together during this conjunction, that is merely an optical illusion. In reality, Mars is in the foreground and Jupiter is 300 million miles further away,

Although Jupiter will be about 20 times brighter than Mars, both planets will be easily visible to the naked eye from anywhere in the world with clear skies. However, a good pair of stargazing binoculars or a small telescope will enhance the view. Not only will you see the planets more clearly with such optical aids, but the four largest moons of Jupiter will also be visible. Ganymede and Callisto will flank Jupiter, with the highly volcanic moon Io and potentially habitable Europa between Jupiter and Ganymede. Mars will appear slightly above Jupiter and its moons. 

To see the two planets together, look toward the eastern half of the sky. Mars and Jupiter will rise around the same time in the middle of the night, and climb slowly into the sky before fading from view as dawn breaks.