On the night of December 21, 2020, a rare celestial event is all set to take place. The last time it happened was around 800 years ago. The planets of Jupiter and Saturn will be so close from Earth that they’ll look like one gigantic shining star. The 2020’s celestial event has been christened as the “Christmas Star” or “Star of Bethlehem,” due to its proximity to Christmas Day.
The meeting of Jupiter and Saturn in the night sky is referred to as a “great conjunction”. This is named so because it happens less often than the conjunctions of other planets. The so-called “Great Conjunction” last happened in 1623 but could not be seen from Earth. Before that, the phenomenon previously occurred on March 4, 1226.
It’s possible that their meeting on Dec. 21 might produce a “Christmas star” as their lights coalesce and appear like a single point of reflected light with the naked eye. The spectacle will next reportedly occur on March 15, 2080.
A conjunction happens when planets appear incredibly close to one another in the sky because they line up with Earth in their respective orbits.