Every few years, the planets align, and you can actually see them with the naked eye. They’ve been that way since the beginning of January and will be until the end of February. The next few nights are prime viewing time.
Louis-Pierre Sauvé is an amateur astronomer and retired high school physics teacher.
“If you look south, a bit to the left, southwest, you will see Venus,” he explains. “You’re sure to see it because it’s so bright, it’s unbelievable.”
Saturn is a bit lower on the horizon; Jupiter is a bit to the left and higher up; and Mars is a bit more to the east and lower. Sauvé says you’ll notice its reddish colour. The best time is between 6:00pm and 7:00pm
Sauvé says you can take photos with a good cellphone camera or a 35-mm. Throw in a telescope and you’ll see more.
“I’ve just mentioned those four planets but there are two other ones that are also in the line of sight, and these are Uranus and Neptune and with a telescope, you would be able to see them.”
There’s more detail in this audio link of our interview.
