See a beautiful planetary parade in the sky throughout April 2022

By Pete Lawrence

Published: Thursday, 31 March 2022 at 12:00 am

Throughout April and springtime 2022, there are going to be multiple opportunities to observe planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and Uranus in the sky from the northern hemisphere, making for a fantastic planetary parade perfect for beginners, kids and seasoned astronomers.

Here we’ll reveal which planets are going to be visible in the sky, which planets will appear side-by-side, when and where to see them and, if you scroll down further, how to photograph them.

Close meetings in the sky between planets, Moons, stars and other celestial objects are known as conjunctions, and are great events to observe with the naked eye or through binoculars.

Indeed, conjunctions with the Moon can be an opportunity to use our lunar companion as a jumping-off point, helping you star-hop to a star or planet that might otherwise be tricky to locate.

After all, most people should be able to find the Moon in the morning or evening sky.

There are a number of interesting morning meetings of planets in April 2022, ending with a spectacular conjunction of Venus and Jupiter.

Mercury will also be a planet to keep an eye on in April, but will appear in the evening sky from mid-month onwards. For more info on this, read our guide to observing the planets in April.

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As April 2022 progresses, Mercury becomes an evening object, visible after sunset. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Throughout this guide we’ll be stating the magnitudes of the planets in question, which is simply how astronomers talk about the apparent brightness of a celestial object. For help understanding this, read our guide to stellar magnitude.

At the start of April, mag. –4.2 Venus rises above the east-southeast horizon, 80 minutes before sunrise.

The bright planet lies near to mag. +0.9 Saturn and +1.1 Mars. This dimmer pair appears southwest (right, as seen from the UK) of Venus in the dawn twilight.

As the mornings pass, Venus heads east, leaving the group.

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A view of Uranus near the Moon as it will appear through 7×50 binoculars on 3 April 2022.

On 3 April, a 6%-illuminated waxing crescent Moon sits close to Uranus, which is always close to the naked-eye threshold from a dark-sky location.

On the evening of 3 April, Uranus will appear 1.1° from the Moon’s centre.

On the morning of 5 April, Mars and Saturn appear just 19 arcseconds apart with Venus 7.3˚ to the northeast (where 5° is about the width of your 3 middle fingers held out at arm’s length).

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Using your hand outstretched at arm’s length, your fingers can be used to estimate degrees of distance in the night sky.

Mid-month, Jupiter enters the scene. On 14 April, Venus rises 70 minutes before sunrise, with mag. –1.9 Jupiter rising 30 minutes after Venus.

If you’re really getting into the swing of things now, don’t forget you can also observe the Lyrid meteor shower with the naked eye. The Lyrids’ peak activity occurs on the night of 22/23 April.

On 24 April, there’s quite a parade of planets forming in the morning sky with, in order of greatest apparent distance from the Sun, Saturn, Mars, Venus and Jupiter all in a line.

This planetary parade is sure to be quite exceptional, providing you can get a clear view.

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View Jupiter, Venus, Mars, Saturn and the Moon together on the morning of 24 April 2022. This illustration depicts the view from southwest England, looking east-southeast at around 05:20 BST. Credit: Stellarium

 

Coming back to Venus and Jupiter and their tango throughout April, over the remainder of the month both planets appear to converge.

On the morning of 27 April, Venus and Jupiter appear 3.4˚ apart, 4˚ north of a slender 13%-illuminated waning crescent Moon.

Both planets appear 2.5˚ apart on 28 April, 1.6˚ apart on 29 April, and 41 arcminutes apart on 30 April.

The closest approach is on 1 May, when Venus and Jupiter are separated by 22 arcminutes.

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Venus and Jupiter are visible in the morning sky late April, approximately 30–45 minutes before sunrise. Credit: Pete Lawrence

However, viewing the pair won’t be as straightforward as their impressive individual magnitudes suggest, and this is due to low altitude.

The best strategy is to catch Venus early in the month and stick with it.

At the month’s end, Venus and Jupiter rise an hour before the Sun and it should be possible to spot them 30–45 minutes before sunrise.

As an extra challenge, both planets can be seen in broad daylight; Venus with the naked eye, Jupiter with optical assistance.

Using Venus as a guide provides an opportunity to observe Jupiter in daylight.

By using a driven equatorial mount, you can pick up Venus in the early morning and stay with it until after sunrise.

However, care must always be taken when observing planets close to sunrise or sunset, or during daylight hours, as catching a glimpse of the Sun through binoculars or a telescope could seriously damage your vision.

If in doubt, don’t attempt it!

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Mercury sets approximately two hours after the Sun at the end of April, a time when it will appear near to the Pleiades open cluster. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Another planet to keep an eye out for towards the end of April and into May will be Mercury, which makes its way past the Pleiades open star cluster over a series of nights.

If you begin observing the Pleiades on 27 April and take a look every evening until 2 May, you’ll see Mercury saddle alongside the star cluster, changing its position bit by bit, night after night.

If you fancy photographing any of these planetary meetings, read on for our full astrophotography guide.

Photographing the planetary conjunctions

How can you make a photograph of Venus and Jupiter look like anything other than a pair of dots in the sky?

Fortunately, the geometry of this alignment will help. If you have a wide-field setup, the pair’s low altitude will allow you to incorporate some horizon in the shot.

Plus, the proximity of Venus to Jupiter on 1 May means it should be possible to capture both planets as discs through a telescope.

Venus will be showing a 68%-illuminated disc with an apparent diameter of 17 arcseconds on this date; Jupiter’s disc will be 35 arcseconds and accompanied by the Galilean moons.

Brightening dawn skies present unique issues for astrophotographers, because you need to adapt to conditions on almost a minute-by-minute basis.

The low altitude will mean you need to consider foreground objects carefully too, in case a conjunction moves behind a tree.

Equipment

  • DSLR or equivalent camera with a telephoto lens
  • Equatorial tracking mount

Photographing the planetary conjunction, step-by-step

Step 1

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With so many conjunctions this month, it’ll pay to plan ahead. This table shows the approximate minimum span (in degrees) needed to cover the conjunctions and the recommended focal length for the lens or telescope. Aim to include the objects with some space around them to create a relaxed, uncramped shot.

Step 2

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Consider the nature of each conjunction and plan to bring out the best of it. The Uranus and Moon conjunction on 3 April has a large exposure differential; if you expose so that the Moon’s crescent burns out, it will reveal the Moon’s earthshine portion and Uranus at the same time – a great shot if you can pull it off.

Step 3

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Before the conjunction of Mars and Saturn on 5 April, plan how you can best bring out the colours of the two planets. Allowing them to trail through the frame is one way, as well as deliberately defocusing slightly. The defocused discs will avoid the usually over-exposed core at low magnification.

Step 4

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The Venus-Jupiter conjunction at the end of April is a chance to capture both planets through a telescope. The closest approach occurs on 1 May when both planets will appear separated by 22.4 arcminutes. A telescope/camera combo that can capture the Moon’s disc will also be able to capture Venus and Jupiter.

Step 5

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Add interest by trying to capture and combine the closing, closest and separating phases of a conjunction. By using the same setup with an unchanged orientation, take images and load them into layer-based photo-editing software. Align a planet between layers and set the blend mode of the higher levels to lighten.

Step 6

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Although it’s interesting to focus on single pairs, there’s also an impressive morning line-up of four bright planets. On 25 April, the line spans 33° and includes the Moon too. A 30mm lens for APS-C cameras (48mm lens for full frame) will catch them all in one shot. Your biggest battle will be the bright dawn twilight.

If you do manage to capture an image of any of these planetary meetings, be sure to send us your images or share them with us via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

This guide originally appeared in the April 2022 issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine.