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Skygazers are getting the chance to see two bright planets appearing close together despite being millions of kilometres apart.
The cosmic treat shows Venus and Jupiter lined up as they rise above the horizon, and just before the Sun follows after them.
The peak time to see this planetary conjunction, which happens once every few years, was between around 5am and 6am on Saturday but it can still be spotted on Sunday and in the coming days as the planets slowly move apart.
Despite appearing from Earth to be lined up, the planets will not actually be in that position in space.
Dr Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, said: “In this particular case you have Venus and Jupiter (appearing) close together and because they are both bright, that’s a nice sight.”
He said: “It is fun. Is it scientifically important – no not really – but it does provide a nice spectacle.
“I think that the nice thing you can have is that with a single telescope eyepiece you can see the two planets together which is an unusual view.”
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