Three of the visible planets will make for interesting skywatching targets tonight (June 30), though one would require staying up late.
Mars and Venus will make an in depth approach within the night sky tonight and will probably be visible at sunset. Look to the west when darkness falls and find the pair just under the Leo constellation, the Lion. They will probably be separated by just 3 degrees, or around one-third of the width of your handheld at arm’s length. The pair will set some 2.5 hours after the sun sets, disappearing around 11 p.m. ET (0300 GMT on Saturday, July 1).
Meanwhile, the rather more elusive Neptune will rise over the horizon to the east just after midnight on Saturday. Its appearance marks the start of what’s referred to as retrograde motion, meaning the planet will begin moving westward through the constellations somewhat than its regular eastward motion.
Related: Night sky, June 2023: What you’ll be able to see tonight [maps]
Mars and Venus needs to be fairly easy to locate; Venus continues to be quite vivid within the night sky during what’s referred to as its evening apparitions, meaning it appears at night. The planet is approaching its brightest, which should occur on July 7 when it reaches magnitude -4.7 (The lower the magnitude, the brighter the thing.). By the tip of July, Venus will set earlier and earlier until it begins appearing within the morning by mid-August.
Mars will probably be somewhat fainter, although its proximity to vivid Venus should help skywatchers find it. Search for a reddish, regular orb (not twinkling) just above and to the left of the “evening star” Venus.
The moon will probably be fairly vivid tonight at 92% illuminated because it approaches the total moon phase on July 3. But it should set around 3 a.m. ET (0700 GMT) on July 1, just in time to try to spot Neptune.
Skywatchers taken with seeing Neptune enter retrograde motion could have to stay awake much later, because the planet won’t appear and start rising above the horizon until the early morning hours on Saturday. Should you have not observed Neptune before, just note that as a consequence of being essentially the most distant planet in our solar system, the ice giant appears quite small and will be faint. Neptune will appear just above the Cetus constellation, the Whale, although in the event you are unfamiliar with locating it, it is perhaps easier to make use of a stargazing app in your computer or mobile device.
The phenomenon of retrograde motion occurs as a consequence of the proven fact that Earth orbits the sun; as our position within the solar system changes, so too does our perspective when viewing distant objects like Neptune.
If you must take a more in-depth have a look at the planets of the night sky, our guides to the best telescopes and best binoculars are a fantastic place to start out.
And for recommendations on photographing the night sky usually, try our guide on methods to photograph the moon and our rundowns on the best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography.