Jupiter and Saturn will seem to collide in an unrepeatable sighting

A battle of the gas giants will see all space lovers staring at the sky this December, when Jupiter and Saturn seem to collide in a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Based on all scientific estimates, life will only be possible for a grain of sand during the life of the universe. It could be said that we are all lucky enough to be here right now reading this article. On the other hand, you’re probably not as lucky as the guy who found a 4.5 billion-year-old space rock worth millions falling off its roof.

However, if you have some free time during the month of December, you will probably be able to catch a glimpse of Saturn and Jupiter getting so close to each other, they will look like a single bright planet in the night sky.

Scientists claim that Saturn and Jupiter have been dragging each other across the night sky in recent months. They are expected to finish their cosmic dance towards our western horizon an hour after sunset on December 21st.

These types of events are generally called a grand conjunction, which occurs approximately every 20 years. However, the extremely narrow nature of this conjunction will make it extremely rare – the last time these two gas giants came this close was observed in 1623.

In fact, the two will get so close that they will be at a visual distance of one fifth of the diameter of the Earth’s Moon. There is a sexy spatial tension right there.

Thankfully, you won’t have to wait until December 21st to witness the intergalactic tango, as it’s happening right now. You can see the two with the naked eye in light-polluted areas, just look for two small points in the sky towards the western horizon and you will see Saturn (smaller) gaining over Jupiter (larger).

When the conjunction occurs, people around the world are likely to see it slightly differently depending on the degree of twilight, where they are and, of course, how good their eyesight is.

If you have a telescope you will want to get it out, because you are unlikely to see a space event like this until 2080. The space race has begun and if you are wrecking your liver this beautiful Saturday night, be sure to keep an eye on the sky.