Saturn reaches opposition on June 27, just six days after Thursday’s summer solstice. During opposition, when the sun, Earth and Saturn are lined up in a straight line, the ring world will rise in the east around sunset. It will be at its highest altitude in the south after midnight and set around dawn.
Throughout the weeks around opposition, this exquisite jewel will appear unusually bright because Earth and Saturn are as close as they will get to each other all year. Saturn’s rings will be angled wide open for maximum display, and it will shine at its brightest in more than a decade. Because of the planets’ southern declination in Sagittarius, the ring world will be at one of its lowest possible viewing altitudes for stargazers in North America. Consequently, the best time for telescopic observations will be around midnight when Saturn is at its highest altitude in the southern sky.
Look for Saturn this week, 10 degrees above the southeastern horizon near the lid of Sagittarius’ teapot asterism at 10:30 p.m.
First Published: June 19, 2018, 4:00 a.m.