Five planets line up in rare celestial array
http://www.sacbee.com/state_wire/story/2220437p-2614222c.html
By ANDREW BRIDGES AP Science Writer
Published 11:40 a.m. PDT Wednesday, April 17, 2002
http://www.sacbee.com/state_wire/story/2220437p-2614222c.html
By ANDREW BRIDGES AP Science Writer
Published 11:40 a.m. PDT Wednesday, April 17, 2002
The five brightest planets visible from Earth have lined up in plain sight to form a spectacular celestial array that won't be seen again until 2040. Through the next four weeks, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Saturn and Venus will appear tightly clustered in the western sky, forming a knot of planets that can be viewed in the evening...
Astronomers stress there is no astronomical significance to the pileup. It is, Beatty said, just a "pretty coincidence."
That hasn't stopped doomsayers in the past. In the months before the May 2000 lineup, some thought it foretold widespread catastrophe. No such disaster happened.