Saturn to be Brightest Sunday, How to Watch
Saturn, the second largest planet in our Solar System, will be at its brightest this Sunday i.e. September 21, 2025
Saturn, the second largest planet in our Solar System, will be at its brightest this Sunday i.e. September 21, 2025.
The ringed planet will on Sunday reach its annual and hence look the biggest and brightest.
Explained: Saturn at Opposition
Saturn opposition is when it aligns with Earth and the Sun, with Earth in the middle.
Saturn orbits the Sun every 29.4 years, and it comes to opposition every 378 days as Earth undertakes it on its far shorter orbit of the Sun, according to Forbes.
Saturn is now in the Pisces constellation and will come at its opposition this Sunday.
With Earth placed between Saturn and the Sun, Saturn's rings will be at their widest and brightest for the year, according to EarthSky.
Like a Full Moon, Saturn will appear fully illuminated by the Sun's rays because of its position relative to the Sun. When Saturn reaches opposition, viewing conditions will be ideal. On Sept. 21, the moon will be in its new phase, so moonlight won't threaten to wash out objects in the night sky, according to Live Science.
How to Watch Saturn in Opposition?
The best way to view Saturn is through a pair of skywatching binoculars or a backyard telescope. Through skywatching equipment, you can observe Saturn's stunning rings, which undergo a dramatic brightening known as the Seeliger effect.
Although the precise moment of opposition centers on September 21, 2025 it takes Saturn a couple of weeks to approach and leave its position in the opposite part of the sky from the Sun.
So if you can't see Saturn on the 21st, you still have some time to view the ringed planet at its biggest and brightest a day or two before and after that date.
Saturn’s next opposition will occur on Oct. 4, 2025, when it will be in the Cetus constellation, having traveled another 29th of its orbital path around the Sun.
Saturn and its Rings
While other giant planets in our solar system also have rings, Saturn is most famous as the ringed planet due to its remarkably massive, complex, and spectacular ring system, which is visible even from Earth with a telescope.
Saturn is made mostly of helium because of which one can’t stand on its surface. It’s very windy as Saturn’s equator reaching speeds of 1,100 mph.
Saturn's rings are made up of billions of pieces of ice and rock, and are not solid.
Saturn also has the distinction of having a maximum number of Moons in the Solar System, and one of its Moon, Titan, is larger than Mercury.
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