Rare ‘Double Planet’ Visible In Texas Skies This Week

Look up into the night sky this week and you'll see the planets Mars and Jupiter snuggled up close to each other for the first time in years.

What is the Mars and Jupiter Conjunction?

This is the astronomical event that is part fact, part illusion.

This week, centered around Wednesday, these two massive planets will see their closest proximity to each other from Earth's perspective.

The illusion comes into play because, although it looks like they are side by side in the night sky, the two planets are actually more than 350 million miles apart.

According to space.com, by the start of August, Mars was about 150 million miles away from Earth. By the end of the month, the red planet will be about 16 million miles away.

When Can I See the Conjunction?

Although semi-visible all week, if you wake up early enough, before sunrise, on Wednesday the 14th of August, you can look to the east and see the infamous 'double planet' in the night sky.

For those familiar with constellations (don't lie, I know you've been curious), both planets will be situated between the horns of Taurus.

Both planets will also shine their trademark colors: Jupiter a silvery-gray and Mars a pumpkin-orange.

The next alignment is not set for a while until 2033 then the gas giant and red planet will be separated by about .2 degrees, relative to Earth, so don't miss out!

This astronomical event lines up with the Perseid meteor shower that we have seen throughout the recent months, including the northern lights being visible from Texas not too long ago.