Planetary Parade Arranges For A Stargazing Spectacle

Although stargazers might find celestial happenings intriguing, many of us forget to look to the heavens. Consequently, we miss out on some rare events, such as the alignment of seven of our solar system's planets, an event that took place on February 28 just as the sun was setting below the horizon.

Throughout January and February, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune were all visible in the night sky. However, on February 28, those six were joined, for just one night, by Mercury. Four of the planets-Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, and Mars-were easily visible to the naked eye, but to s...