In a rare astronomic feat on Friday night, seven planets, Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Mercury, Saturn and Venus, were not only visible simultaneously but also appeared to be aligned when seen from Earth.
The extraordinary celestial event known as a planetary alignment or a planet parade treated to outer space marvels seen in the evening sky on the last day of February. Although planet lineups aren’t necessarily rare, a seven-planet alignment is exceedingly uncommon. August 2025 is also set to delight space enthusiasts with a four-planet parade, according to NASA.
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As for the Feb spectacle, stargazers around the world witnessed the “rare planetary parade” on Friday. Netizens shared their snaps of the night sky beauty, marvelling at how “cool” the space is.
Expert weighs in on planetary parade
“A planetary parade is a moment when multiple planets are visible in the sky at the same time,” Dr Greg Brown, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told PA Media. “How impressive a parade it is will depend on how many planets are in it and how visible they are.”
“Mercury, Neptune and Saturn are all very close to the horizon in the early evening and, particularly in the case of Neptune and Saturn, will struggle to be seen in the twilight,,” Brown added. “In addition, Uranus, like Neptune, is very faint, making it almost impossible to find without a pair of binoculars or a telescope. Venus, Jupiter and Mars, however, are all very easy to see with the unaided eye.”
Netizens shares planetary alignment pics on X
Although the spectacle isn’t crystal clear in all photos of the cosmic synchronisation shared on the microblogging platform X, formerly Twitter, the wonder shared by space enthusiasts was unparalleled. And it makes sense after all, another all-seven-planet lineup isn’t expected until 2040.
“Been awake since 3am and drove for 8 hours to witness the planetary alignment from one of the largest dark sky preserves in the US,” an X user tweeted with a picture of the beautiful night sky.
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Another excited stargazer shared from the UK: “The #PlanetaryParade Alignment from Cornwall_UK tonight :)… Mercury Saturn and Neptune all had set by this time…”
“Space is cool #PlanetaryParade #planetaryalignment,” posted someone else on X.
A photography page on X even shared a timelapse of 4000 pictures of the mesmerising planetary parade.
