Skywatchers Delight! Planetary pairings make April mornings special

April will delight sky-watchers with planetary conjunctions in the morning skies, a hidden surprise in the Big Dipper and more celestial events.

Below are the skywatching highlights shared by NASA for the month of April.

If you are an early riser, you can see Venus, Mars, and Saturn forming a trio in the southeast in the morning sky. On April 1, the trio will be a couple of finger widths apart.

On April 4 and 5, you can see the close conjunction of Mars and Saturn, just look southeast 45 minutes before sunrise. These two planets will come together, appearing as almost a single point of light.

At the end of this month, Venus and Jupiter will be heading for their own ultra-close conjunction. To watch their close conjunction, look southeast 45 minutes before sunrise on April 30th.

The Big Dipper, a large asterism consisting of seven bright stars of the constellation Ursa Major, is one of the icons of the night sky in the northern sky. One of its stars is a double star located at the bend of the handle of the Big Dipper. Named Mizar and Alcor, the two star systems are around a light-year apart, and are located 80-90 light-years away from our solar system.

You can find the "double" stars in the Big Dipper in April. According to NASA, Mizar and Alcor are a rare example of a double star that you can see as a pair without the aid of a telescope. At first glance, they look like a single bright star, but on closer inspection, you can see them as separate stars with your own eyes. You can also use binoculars which will easily show them as separate stars.

It's stargazing time - if you're an early riser💫April begins with a planetary conjunction, and by the end of the month, FOUR planets will be gathered together in the morning skies. More skywatching tips: https://t.co/LQVVi3x0zU pic.twitter.com/pbm2RBAXNA

— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) March 31, 2022