A Dazzling Venus–Jupiter Conjunction Lights Up the Sky This Week—Here's How to See It

From meteor showers to northern lights sightings, August has been an action-packed month for stargazers so far. And there's more to come.

The two brightest planets—Venus and Jupiter—have been making their approaches to one another throughout the beginning of August. They will appear at their closest on August 11 and 12—only about a degree apart, according to NASA. This event will also happen against a backdrop of bright stars, including Orion, Taurus, Gemini, and Sirius.

During the celestial rendezvous, known in astronomy terms as a conjunction, the planets appear to be close together in the sky, but in reality, they are still tens of millions of miles apart. As planets in our solar system orbit the sun at varying speeds, sometimes their orbital paths bring them close together on the same side of the sun.

From the Northern Hemisphere, you won't need binoculars to spot the planets in the pre-dawn sky since they are bright enough to see with the naked eye easily. For the best view, find a location with unobstructed views of the eastern horizon and look for what will appear to be two bright stars in the early morning hours before sunrise. The planets will appear closest on Tuesday morning, with Jupiter appearing to glow to the upper left of Venus.

The conjunction also coincides with the peak of the Perseids meteor shower, but the bright, almost-full moon may make it difficult to see the meteors this year.