There has been quite a bit of news around the 'Planetary Parade' in the last week. This is where six planets appear to be in alignment in the night sky.

They are, in fact, millions of miles apart, but the optics are that they are travelling in a line across the sky.

NASA says four of the planets are visible to the naked eye just after sunset throughout January, that is, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars. Uranus and Neptune will be in the sky, too. However, NASA says they will be visible using a telescope.

The best time to view the planetary alignment is between 60 and 90 minutes after sunset. Look towards the western horizon to spot Venus, which is the “evening star.” Jupiter will be located towards the north, sitting high in the sky, while Mars, with its orange hue, will be lower in the northeast.

Saturn will also be visible in the west. However, to catch a glimpse of Saturn’s rings, you’ll need a small telescope. Venus and Saturn will be visible only briefly after sunset before they slip below the horizon, so it’s best to head out early.

Planets always appear along a line in the sky, so the “alignment” isn’t special. What’s less common is seeing four or five bright planets at once, which doesn’t happen every year.

Now, these events are sometimes called “alignments” of the planets, and while it’s true that they will appear more or less along a line across the sky, that’s what planets always do.

That line is called the ecliptic, and it represents the plane of the solar system in which the planets orbit around the Sun.

Is it a “planet parade”? NASA says this isn’t a technical term in astronomy, so we can call it what we wish!