Jupiter and Saturn’s great conjunction

Jupiter and Saturn will be closest – only 0.1 degrees apart – on the day of the solstice, December 21, 2020. They’re already amazing! The December 21, 2020 great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn is highly conspicuous in the west after sunset each evening now. On December 21, the pair will be only 0.1 degree apart. Astronomers use the word conjunction to describe meetings of planets and other objects on our sky’s dome. They use the term great conjunction to describe meetings of Jupiter and Saturn, which are the two biggest worlds in our solar system. Though the two planets will appear spectacularly close together on the sky’s dome now, Jupiter and Saturn are actually 456 million miles (734,000 million km) apart. Saturn is nearly twice as far away as Jupiter. Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions happen every 20 years; the last one was in the year 2000. But these conjunctions aren’t all created equal. The 2020 great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn will be the closest since 1623 and the closest observable since 1226! 2020’s extra-close Jupiter-Saturn conjunction won’t be matched again until the Jupiter-Saturn conjunction of March 15, 2080. At the 2000 great conjunction, 20 years ago, Jupiter and Saturn were near the sun in our sky and difficult to observe. We’re due for a more observable great conjunction. Jupiter and Saturn are up every evening now – not far from the sunset glare – easily visible and exceedingly noticeable as two bright objects near each other. Plus, in the days prior to the conjunction (last week), the young moon appeared appearing in the evening sky, pointing the way to the planets. While you’re looking at them, you might notice that – unlike the twinkling stars – Jupiter and Saturn both shine steadily. In November – during the period when the moon swept past Jupiter and Saturn (about November 16 to November 21) – the two gas giant planets were some 3 degrees apart. Over the time between November 21 and the day of the conjunction itself, December 21, Jupiter will travel about 6 degrees and Saturn 3 degrees on the sky’s dome. That movement will mean that Jupiter bridges the 3-degree gap between itself and Saturn. Saturn is the sixth planet outward from the sun. It’s the farthest and slowest-moving planet that we can easily see with the eye alone. Dazzling Jupiter, the fifth planet outward from the sun, is the second-slowest bright planet, after Saturn. It’s by virtue of their slow motions in front of the constellations of the zodiac that Jupiter and Saturn have the least frequent of bright-planet conjunctions. Saturn takes nearly 30 years to go around the sun, while Jupiter takes nearly 12 years. Thus, every 20 years, Jupiter catches up to Saturn as viewed from Earth. Now, here’s why these great Jupiter/Saturn conjunctions happen every 20 years. Each year, Saturn completes about 12 degrees of its orbit around the sun, whereas Jupiter completes about 30 degrees. Therefore, in one year, Jupiter closes the gap between itself and Saturn by about 18 degrees (30 – 12 = 18 degrees). In a period of 20 years, then, Jupiter gains 360 degrees on Saturn (18 x 20 = 360 degrees), therefore lapping the ringed planet once every 20 years. Shoot on Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K using sigma 150-600mm lens. Music : Spenta Mainyu Artist : Jesse Gallagher For all the gear I use: Amazon: https://www.amazon.in/shop/younus social handle : Instagram :   / its.younus   Facebook : https://fb.com/younustalks Telegram : https://t.me/younusyousuf #JupiterSaturnConjunction