WATCHING THE SKIES: Sept. 21-27 | Saturn shining brilliant

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Brad Klein critiques upcoming astronomical highlights with Bethlehem’s “Backyard Astronomy Guy,” Marty McGuire.

This week, a have a look at the planet Saturn which is shining significantly brightly.

If skies are clear, Saturn can be simple to identify since will probably be the brightest object within the jap sky after sundown. And it stays seen for a lot of the night time because it travels towards the western horizon.

Like different planets, its obvious brightness modifications over time. And for Saturn these modifications are much more noticeable since its rings are seen at totally different angles, they usually replicate a whole lot of the solar’s mild.

But this week, it’s the relative positions of the solar, the Earth, and the ringed planet that account for Saturn’s brightness.

On Sept. 21, it reaches “opposition” — “meaning Earth finds itself directly between Saturn and the sun,” McGuire said.

So not only is the full sunlit face of Saturn facing the Earth, but the two planets are also as near as they can get to one another.