Saturn as shown by the Hubble Space Telescope. AFP Photo/NASA (photo by -/NASA/AFP) (photo by -/NASA/AFP via Getty Images)
NASA/AFP via Getty Images
When is the best time to see a planet? On Sunday, September 21, Saturn will reach its annual opposition. Although it is visible in the night sky for a few months, the opposition is when Saturn, Earth and the Sun are aligned, with the earth in the middle. Cue the best possible views of the sixth planet from the sun.
Here is everything you need to know about Saturn’s opposition in 2025.
What is Saturn in the opposition?
Saturn rotates the sun every 29.4 years and comes to the opposition every 378 days, as the Earth takes it on a much smaller orbit of the sun. Saturn is now in the constellation of Pisces. His next opposition will take place on October 4, 2025, when he is in the constellation Cetus, after traveling another 29th of his orbital route around the sun.
Saturn’s annual opposition is a brilliant moment for anyone with any telescope. This is because it is not only the opposition when we see a “full” Saturn – when 100% of its disc is illuminated by our view on Earth – but also when Saturn is closer to Earth. On September 21, Saturn will be about 814 million miles from Earth. This is as close as possible.
Where to find Saturn in the night sky
During the opposition, Saturn rises to the east of the sunset, stays in the southern sky all night and puts in the West at sunrise. This makes it really easy to find.
Although contrasting on September 21, practically speaking, you can get the best views of the year for the “planet ring” for a few weeks on both sides.
What will you see during Saturn’s opposition
The opportunity to see Saturn’s rings is the reason why many people buy their first telescope. Even a basic and small telescope, such as a 2 -inch refractor, can take a look at the rings. However, you will only see real details on them in a 5-inch refractor, with the best telescopes for Saturn observation being Maksutov-Cassegrain and Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescopes, according to Telescope Maker Kellestron.
Although Saturn is his best in 2025 on September 21, his rings are not. Saturn revolves on an axis that leans 27 degrees, as does the Earth, so every 14 and a half years-half of the 29-year-old trajectory-the slope of the planet aligns the rings with the angle from the earth. Consequently, we see Saturn’s rings. This is happening this year, although views will now improve by 2032, with the rings opening.
As a bonus for those who use a telescope to observe Saturn this weekend, the eighth planet, Neptune, comes to its annual opposition on September 23, so it is also ideal.
What will follow in the night sky
Just a day after Saturn arrives the opposition on September 22, is the southern Equinox – equal day, equal night. Few realize that Equinox marks the peak season for the northern lights. Thanks to the Russell-McPherron phenomenon-when the magnetic fields of the Earth and the Sun are more efficiently associated-the geomagnetic thunderstorms tend to intensify around this time, producing an increase in Auroras. Although only visible from New Zealand, Antarctica and western South Pacific, there is a partial solar eclipse on September 21-22, 2025.
All this is part of a busy night sky in September. Better see one hour before the east of the month, a rare five-hand parade sees Aphrodite inflating low in the east, followed by brilliant Zeus and Saturn, which are also visible to the naked eye.
I wish you clear skies and wide eyes.
