A rare "planetary parade" will march across the night sky.
On Feb. 28, after the sun sets, the rare phenomenon will occur, with six planets appearing to align and form a parade across the evening sky, according toNASA.
Usually, people can look up at the bright sky and spot at least one planet. Two or three planets are also commonly hanging out in the night sky, according to NASA. But what about when four, five, or even six planets are visible? Well, then it's what's known as a "planetary parade."
Six planets, Mercury, Venus, Neptune, Saturn, Uranus,and Jupiter, will be visible the night of Feb. 28, according to NASA. Seeing a parade of six or even seven planets is rare.
Of the six, five planets will be visible to the naked eye, Chelsea Gohd, outreach specialist for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told USA TODAY in an email. But binoculars or a telescope will be needed to view Uranus and Neptune.
The "planetary parade" will take place days before a total lunar eclipse, which will occur in the early morning of March 3. The light from the nearly full moon could affect visibility.
Here's what to know about when it will be visible.
Florida Atlantic University's Division of Research celebrates creativity with its annual "Art of Science" contest where research becomes stunning works of visual expression. Take a look at the mesmerizing images, starting with the competition's first place winner ... FIRST PLACE: SELFIE ... CEPHIE. Octopuses have eight flexible appendages that can bend, shorten, elongate and twist in all directions due to their extensive nervous system and the complex arrangement of their arm musculature, which lack bones. Scientific SCUBA divers held their cameras close as the octopus tried to take a "cephie," or octopus selfie." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
SECOND PLACE: SEA TURTLE BEGINNING. Through a method called candling, a flashlight is held up against an egg in the dark to visualize embryonic development. The flipper outline of a developing loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) embryo is visible within its egg, along with the intricate network of extraembryonic blood vessels that sustain growth." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
THIRD PLACE: JOURNEY TO SPACE. This image sequence was captured at about 98,000 feet during the Aerospace Experimental Association's Mission 3, a high-altitude balloon launch conducted in fall 2024 at Florida Atlantic University. It shows the precise instant when the balloon ruptured at the edge of space, marking the transition from ascent to descent. The photograph was taken by a GoPro mounted at the top of the payload, facing upward." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
FACULTY IN THE FIELD: ROSETTE NEBULA. This shot is comprised of 1260 pictures totaling 10.5 hours of total imaging time. The Rosette Nebula is located approximately 5,200 light-years from Earth. It is a large cloud of ionized hydrogen gas. The vibrant red colors seen in images of the Rosette Nebula are primarily due to the emission of light from these hydrogen atoms. The nebula is estimated to have a diameter of about 130 light-years." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
FACULTY IN THE LAB: RADIANT ARCHITECTS. This confocal microscopy image captures radial glial cells in the zebrafish central nervous system, highlighting their unique morphology and critical role in neural development." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
STUDENT IN THE LAB: SKELETAL SECRETS. Coral reefs are crucial players for their marine ecosystems by protecting coastal areas, promoting biodiversity and providing a plethora of ecological benefits for cohabitating wildlife. This is a scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of P. astreoides at 120x magnification depicting the morphology and microstructures of its skeleton." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
STUDENT IN THE FIELD: TWO TO TANGO. Ever tried an activity like kayaking with a partner, only to discover that coordinating paddling is harder than it looks, and end up stuck in some mangroves?" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
TOP POSTDOC: SURVIVAL. Here, the C. elegans nematodes were left searching for more food, and instead of hiding their need, they etched their hunger into the agar, leaving behind an abstract pattern. What looks like art is actually survival - a biological request written in unexpected lines." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
TOP STAFF: ORCHARD ARCHITECTURE. This montage presents fruit in an entirely unique way - through the lens of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). By capturing cross-sections with exquisite clarity and without invasive techniques, MRI reveals the hidden architecture of seeds, rinds and pulps in remarkable detail. What appears at first like abstract art is, in fact, the internal world of familiar produce, transformed into patterns of symmetry, texture and contrast." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: FACE OF DIGESTION. The picture shows a double-labeled of the fruit fly gut. Animals were genetically modified to add a fluorescent-tag (blue color) to an endogenous protein, which has been linked to metabolic disorders such as diabetes and obesity. This allows for visualization and study expression differences of the protein in response to different diets, such as high sugar, high protein or no food. The specimen was also immunohistochemically labeled with antibodies against a structural gut protein (magenta color) to visualize the gut structure. Confocal microscopy was used to acquire images of each fluorescent label." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: HATCHET. A type of lime treefrog, the picture shows the distinctive "hatchet" face of Sphaenorhynchus lacteus. The picture was captured near the bank of the only known boiling river in the world, called Mayantuyacu, in a remote area of the central Peruvian Amazon." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: TRES LECHES. These are newly hatched Florida pompano (Trachinotus carolinus) larvae reared at the Florida Atlantic University Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute. At just 0 days post-hatch, they have only recently emerged from their eggs and represent the earliest stage of development for this coastal species." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: ORIGIN STORY. This image captures a developing zebrafish embryo, a powerful model for exploring how the nervous system takes shape. The image has been falsely colored for artistic effect, highlighting the intricate beauty of developing structures that guide our understanding of both healthy and disordered development." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: CONCH SUNSET. The FAU Queen Conch Lab has a partnership project with Blue Action Lab on Grand Bahama Island. The Mobile Labs are used to raise queen conch larvae to juvenile stage for conservation, restoration and education. The queen conch is important for the culture, nutrition, livelihood and coastal seas of countless communities in The Bahamas." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: WHERE BONE MEETS GOLD. False-colored SEM image of 3D-printed beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP) for bone regeneration. Bone has an incredible, but limited, ability to repair itself. Traditionally, the gold standard treatment is bone transplantation from another healthy site in the same patient. However, this involves a second surgery, increasing the risk of complications and treatment costs. This image shows a synthetic alternative: 3D-printed β-TCP, a ceramic material with a calcium-phosphate composition similar to natural bone. The structure has a multi-scale interconnected porous architecture (350—1500µm) and fine supporting struts (230—550µm). The manufacturing of such complex geometry is only achievable through 3D printing, resulting in an implant that is both beautiful and functional. Over time, the β-TCP biodegrades and is naturally replaced by the patient's own bone." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: MAN-IN-THE-GROUND VINE. Man-in-the-ground vine (Ipomoea microdactyla) is state-listed as endangered. The photographer is researching flora and fauna native to Florida, with an emphasis on at-risk and endangered species. The subjects of the portraits are photographed within their natural habitats or at local conservation organizations. They range from a rare deep red morning glory found primarily in the pine rocklands of Miami-Dade County (man in the ground/Ipomoea microdactyla) to the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta), which faces multiple threats, including habitat loss, light pollution and incidental capture by fisheries. The project merges artistic observation with ecological inquiry to reflect Florida's biodiversity." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: CRACKS THAT MEND. This image of a fallen tree reveals the story of time, struggle and survival. Each ring marks a year of growth, while the cracks running through the wood tell of storms weathered and pressures endured. Despite the breaks, the tree remains whole and offers shelter to new plants and moss along its edges. In many ways, this mirrors the human journey through mental health. Life leaves its marks, some visible and some hidden, but resilience is found in how we continue to grow around the fractures. Healing does not erase the cracks; it transforms them into part of our strength and story." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: METALLIC BLOOM. This image was captured using specialized imaging called High-Angle Annular Dark Field with a specific type of microscope called scanning transmission electron microscopy. It uses electrons instead of light to reveal structures far smaller than what regular microscopes can detect. The bright cluster shows nickel particles formed by heating chemicals to 170°C in a polyol liquid called ethylene glycol. The polyol acts like a chemical cooking medium, helping control how the nickel particles form and grow. Though the particles didn't grow on the salt crystal, the surface beneath them looks like one, creating the illusion of a metallic bloom. Each particle is merely a billionth of a meter wide, several times smaller than a grain of sand, yet together they form a branching pattern shaped by heat and chemistry." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
RESEARCH EXCELLENCE: SONIC PORTRAIT. This artwork traces the acquisition of the Danish vowel /y/, as in hygge. Through repeated attempts, the speaker's pronunciation shifts — each spectrogram capturing a moment of articulation in transition. These four images are voiceprints: acoustic and visual records of a phoneme being learned. Subtle changes in formant structure reflect the fine motor adjustments of speech. The data were generated and analyzed using Praat, an open-source tool for phonetic research. Together, the images form a sonic portrait of a vowel, a study in adaptation, where speech and language takes shape through repetition and time." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Winners of FAU's Art of Science competition take you under the sea and into outer space
Florida Atlantic University's Division of Research celebrates creativity with its annual "Art of Science" contest where research becomes stunning works of visual expression. Take a look at the mesmerizing images, starting with the competition's first place winner ...FIRST PLACE: SELFIE ... CEPHIE.Octopuses have eight flexible appendages that can bend, shorten, elongate and twist in all directions due to their extensive nervous system and the complex arrangement of their arm musculature, which lack bones. Scientific SCUBA divers held their cameras close as the octopus tried to take a "cephie," or octopus selfie.
What time is the 'planetary parade'?
According to NASA, the timing for the "planetary parade" indicates it will be visible in the evening of Feb. 28.
Gohd says that the six planets will be visible in the evening sky from Earth, just after the sun sets, for stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere.
"Saturn will be near the horizon, Venus and Mercury will be higher up in the sky and Jupiter will be up high in the sky near the Moon," Gohd stated. "Uranus and Neptune will be nearby Saturn, but will be harder to spot."
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More news:A total lunar eclipse is happening in March. Here's how to view it.
What will you be able to see during the 'planetary parade'?
Mercury - Visible with the unaided eye, but stargazers will be able to see the planet more clearly with binoculars or a telescope.
Venus - Visible with the unaided eye
Neptune- A telescope or binoculars are needed to view the planet
Saturn - Visible with the unaided eye
Uranus - A telescope or binoculars are needed to view the planet
Jupiter- Visible with the unaided eye
Stargazing apps, such as Stellarium or Sky Safari, can also help identify planets and constellations in the sky.
Check weather forecasts ahead of time to see if clouds might hinder your view. The moonlight and light pollution could affect the visibility of the "planetary parade".
For the best chance of seeing the "planetary parade", stargazers should move away from city lights and to a viewing location where the horizon is clear, according to Gohd.
What equipment do you need to view a 'planetary parade'?
Certain planets will only be visible with binoculars or a telescope.
Those interested in purchasing equipment should steer clear of telescopes that cost less than $500 and opt for Celestron, Robert Lunsford, the American Meteor Society's newsletter editor and fireball report coordinator, previously told USA TODAY.
He advises beginners to choose a telescope with a lens rather than a mirror, and for those seeking a more affordable option, he recommends binoculars.
Tips for viewing the 6-planet alignment
Find a spot with a clear, unobstructed view of the horizon.
Avoid light pollution and move away from cities.
Have your binoculars or telescope ready to view planets that aren't visible to the naked eye
Stargazers should move "away from bright lights," according to Gohd. "Dark skies are best! And your view will be clearest if you're able to find a viewing location where the horizon is clear so you can see all of the planets from the horizon up through the night sky."
Also, be sure to pack mosquito repellent and dress appropriately for the weather in your area. Check the weather in advance to ensure the skies are clear.
Julia Gomez is a Trending reporter for USA TODAY and covers popular toys, scientific studies, natural disasters, space, and trending news. Connect with her onLinkedIn,X,Instagram, andTikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:What time do the planets align tonight? How to watch the 'parade'.