This June, you can witness a rare planet parade of 'Fab Five'

In one of the rare occurrences, early risers will get to see a planet parade of “Fab Five” in June.

“The delightful view of all five naked-eye planets will greet early risers throughout the month of June,” the American Astronomical Society’s (AAS) Sky & Telescope publication said in a press release.

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“While seeing two or three planets close together (in what’s known as conjunction) is a rather common occurrence, seeing five is somewhat rarer. And what’s even more remarkable about this month’s line-up is that the planets are arranged in their natural order from the Sun,” it added.

Throughout the month of June, shortly before the Sun rises, viewers could see Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn — in that order — stretching across the sky from low in the east to higher in the south.

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“Mercury will be tougher to spot: Early in the month, viewers will need an unobstructed eastern horizon as well as binoculars to potentially see the little world. As the month wears on, Mercury climbs higher and brightens significantly, making it easier to see, and thus completing the planetary line-up,” the magazine said.

The last time the five naked-eye planets were strung across the horizon in sequence was in December 2004. But this year, the gap between Mercury and Saturn is much shorter.

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“Since ancient times, the naked-eye planets have intrigued and inspired onlookers all over the world. But only sporadically, usually every few years or so, do their orbits take them to the same side of the Sun. When this happens, the planets stretch across the morning or evening skies depending on which side of the Sun they reside. More rare are planetary alignments in which the five planets assemble in a very small corner of the sky,” said NASA.

June 24, key date

Over the next few months, Saturn, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus will appear increasingly spread out across the morning sky – so much so that Venus and Saturn will make their exits as morning objects for most observers by September, according to NASA.

On June 24 morning, according to the magazine, the planetary line-up will be even more compelling. To begin with, Mercury will be much easier to snag, making the five-planet parade that much more accessible. And you’ll have about an hour to enjoy the sight, from when Mercury pops above the horizon to when the rising Sun washes it out of the sky. But the real bonus is the waning crescent Moon positioned between Venus and Mars, serving as a proxy Earth. By this time of the month, the planets are spread farther across the sky — the distance between Mercury and Saturn will be 107°.

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Even if it’s cloudy on the dates of note, you still have all the mornings in between to take in the view of the five naked-eye planets adorning the sky. Just make sure to wake up early.

Globular star clusters

Also, according to NASA, June is an excellent time to observe one of the best-known globular star clusters – M13, also known as the Hercules Cluster. Globular clusters are spherical collections of stars, tightly packed together in their centres. M13 itself contains several hundred thousand stars.

Globular clusters are also extremely old. The stars in M13 are thought to be around 12 billion years old, which is approaching the age of the universe itself. Our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is known to have about 150 globular clusters. They orbit outside the galaxy’s disk, travelling tens of thousands of light-years above and below its spiral arms and most of its stars, NASA said.