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The 2020 Great Conjunction Copy 2 Gemini EXTRA - Supplement The 2020 Great Conjunction by Merle Hiltner Jupiter and Saturn have been prominent in the night sky for most of the summer of 2020. On December 21st, there will be a conjunction of the two planets. As you know, a conjunction is simply the alignment of two or more objects in the sky. However, this is not your typical conjunction. A conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn has been referred to as a great conjunction and this year will be an extremely rare and close one. When two planets are close enough to be able to view through a telescope together, I call these “telescopic conjunctions”. Over the past several years, I’ve seen and imaged a number of telescopic conjunctions. Mars and Neptune, Mars and Jupiter and Jupiter and Venus to name a few. So far, the most memorable and closest I’ve seen was the conjunction on August 27, 2016 of Jupiter and Venus, with the planets separated by about 4’ 25” of arc. That involved a drive to clear skies Jupiter-Venus conjunction, August 27, 2016 Merle Hiltner in South Dakota and searching for the planets in the late afternoon… but that’s another story. these conjunctions are at a separation of a degree or more. A close telescopic conjunction This year Jupiter will pass 6’ 6” south of occurs when the conjunction happens near the Saturn, 1/5th of the moon diameter. The last intersection of the orbital planes, or node, of time Jupiter and Saturn were this close to each the planets. The closer to the node when the other was nearly 400 years ago in July of conjunction happens, the closer the two 1623. At that time the planets were separated planets will appear. The conjunction this year by 5’ 10”. Fortunately, we won’t have to wait happens at a point only 4˚40’ from the node of another 400 years for the next close the planets orbital plane in the constellation conjunction. In a mere 60 years, Jupiter and Capricorn (Fig 1). Saturn will be even closer together, at 6’ 1” apart. Why is this year special and how is it Each successive great conjunction occurs that it could be centuries between these nearly 120 degrees along the ecliptic from the telescopic events? last, forming a triangular pattern. This triangular pattern is known as Kepler’s trigon Jupiter and Saturn have a conjunction at (Fig 2). intervals of about 20 years, but the majority of 14 Gemini EXTRA - Supplement Fig 1 - Jupiter and Saturn orbital planes intersection at the orbital node In 2040, which is the next great conjunction, the planets will be nearly 120 degrees from the intersection node they are near this year. In 2060 the conjunction will be 240 degrees from now. Finally, in 60 years (2080) the planets will return to nearly the same point as now along the ecliptic, shifted by 7 to 8 degrees. This 7 to 8 degree shift each 60 years accounts for the nearly 400-year gap between extremely close telescopic events. After 2080, the conjunctions of Jupiter and Saturn will move away from their orbital node in Capricorn and not have another close conjunction until they approach the orbital node in Cancer... nearly 400 years from now. Historically, the great conjunctions have been observed for thousands of years. In fact a great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn is one of the possible explanations for the star of Bethlehem. Most people may only get three or four chances to see this in their lifetime. To have the opportunity to see the two giants of Fig 2 - Kepler’s trigon, a diagram of great conjunctions from the solar system in the telescope together is Johannes Kepler’s 1606 book De Stella Nova an extremely rare astronomical event. 15 Gemini EXTRA - Supplement Looking way down the line a few of these fall into the “wish I had a time machine to observe these” category. On December 25, 2874, Saturn and Jupiter will pass within 2’ 24” of each other. Then on March 3, 4523 the pair will have 58” of separation. I’m sure, given enough time, a conjunction would coincide with an orbital node and some lucky observers in the future will witness Jupiter occulting Saturn. On Saturday December 19, we have scheduled a public star party at the Eagle Lake Observatory (cancelled if cloudy) to view this telescopic conjunction. The planets will have a separation of 13’ of arc and be well within the telescopic view. Details of the event will be posted on the MAS home page at www.mnastro.org with the latest information on registering for the event and any changes or cancellations due to the weather or covid guidelines. Please check the website before driving to the event. December 21, 2020 Jupiter - Saturn Great Conjunction 16.
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