PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — For stargazers, Monday is a chance to look up and get an excellent view of the largest planet in our solar system.
Jupiter is in opposition. Planetarium staff at the Riverfront Museum said that means the planet rises and sets opposite the sun in the night sky.
This will allow it to look very bright, near the constellations Pegasus and Andromeda.
Not only that, but the large planet will also be the closest it’s been to Earth in about 60 years.
It will appear in the night sky after sunset and be visible through the overnight hours until dawn.
Viewers with a telescope or even binoculars could catch a glimpse of some of Jupiter’s moons.
“The great thing about when a planet is in opposition, you really have all night, but I would recommend about an hour after sunset being an ideal time to see it when it’s bright and somewhat low to the eastern horizon. But it should be high enough an hour after sunset to be over trees and buildings,” said Peoria Riverfront Museum Planetarium Director Renae Kerrigan.
Kerrigan said they plan on live-streaming a view of the planet through the museum’s telescope on their Facebook page.
