Five Different Planets Will Align In The Kentucky Night Sky During An Incredibly Rare Display

Here in Kentucky, we know that immense wonders can be found both above and below ground. But as a collective group, it’s not that often that we gaze into the skies; most of us are instead focused on the immediate here and now, or, all too often, our screens. This March, however, we’re urging you to look up… way up. Because there’s an incredibly rare “planet parade” event happening over the Kentucky night sky, and it’s something you really ought to experience.

The skies have long fed and fueled the wanderlust of naturalists, romantics, artists, and adventurers, their infinite nature simultaneously grounding and inspiring.

And while there are some stellar dark sky parks in Kentucky -- including Mammoth Cave National Park -- for epic stargazing, adventure-seekers in the Midwest will soon be treated to a bucket-list-worthy sky-watching experience during this spring's incredibly rare ecliptic event that’s viewable with the naked eye – or a simple pair of binoculars.

This month, Kentucky stargazers can leave the fancy equipment behind during a "planet parade" event where the five naked-eye planets become visible on their respective planes of the solar system, known as the ecliptic.

During this incredibly rare event, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Uranus will line up in perfect formation in their proper orbital order from the sun.

The last time we had an in-sequence five-planet planet parade in our part of the country was way back in 2004, making this spring's event very special, indeed.

Visible without a telescope, the planets will appear almost within striking distance of one another, though they won't be nearly as close as they appear; each of these worlds is actually millions of miles away from the others. The best time to view the five planets is right after sunset in the western sky.

The viewing window for this rare event is quite short.

From March 25 until March 30 all five planets will line up vertically from the horizon to above the crescent moon. The best viewing of all five planets is before March 28 as Jupiter may fall below the horizon before the sun sets after that date... so mark your calendars!

While visible all across the skies of the Midwest, finding more secluded areas with low light pollution will help novice astronomers spot the phenomenon, so do some research and pick your stargazing spot now!

In addition to Mammoth Cave, Land Between the Lakes is another stellar spot for stargazing in Kentucky.

If are looking for another great place to catch this amazing stellar event head to Black Mountain, the highest point in Kentucky. It should give you an amazing view of all five planets visible in Kentucky during this planet parade:

Since this planet parade is only a few days long we hope you get a chance to peer into the Kentucky night sky to catch a glimpse of this rare stellar event. If you do, leave a quick comment telling us which planets you were able to identify.

For more wondrous nighttime displays in Kentucky, be sure to check out one of the monthly Moonbow occurrences at Cumberland Falls!