Parade of 7 planets is a dont-miss great alignment in the sky: Where, when and how to watch

A seven-luminaries-deep parade of planets will line up and light up the night sky this week, folks.Just after sunset on Feb.28, 2025, Venus, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will align for our viewing pleasure.A planetary alignment goes down, up high, when more than two planets align in the sky.

There are eight planets in our solar system, nine if you count dwarf power planet Pluto.Because we live on Earth, the maximum number of planets we can see from our vantage, for now, is seven — or eight, if Pluto is in the mix.If three planets align, it’s known as a mini-planetary alignment; four makes for a small planetary alignment; five or more is considered large; seven equals a great alignment; and on the ultra-rare occasion that eight are in alignment, we have a full planetary alignment.When we have five or more planets filing into a small sky area, an alignment is upgraded to parade status.Parade is not an official astronomical term and is used fast, loose and with a touch more whimsy than space experts usually allow for.A planetary alignment or parade of six planets has been visible since the first part of February.

However, on Friday, Feb.28, Mercury joins the sky soup, making for a cool seven and upgrading the night sky scene to a great alignment.The last time there was a seven-planet parade was in June 2022.Whether you call it a planetary alignment or a planetary parade, it’s not uncommon for multiple planets to be visible together in the night sky.

According to the knowledgable nerds at NASA, seven-planet parades “aren’t super rare, but they don’t happen every year either.”An alignment of six planets, though, is fairly regular and can happen at least every year.A similar parade occurred last June, but only two planets were visible to the naked eye.In any number, an alignment doesn’t mean all planets are in a straight line in space — rather, they’re gathered closely on one side of the sun and, in the case of this week, m...