Rare 'Planetary Parade' Captured On Camera: Astrophotographer Shares Stunning Visuals

Astrophotographer Josh Dury has shared pictures of the stunning "planetary parade” from Feb. 22, when seven planets aligned in a rare celestial event. It is the first time such an event has taken place since 1982. Dury clicked the picture from Mendip Hills in the United Kingdom’s Somerset.

Here are the pictures of the 7-planet alignment:

Capturing such a phenomenon is not an easy task and requires a high degree of skill, experience, and patience. Technically, planets like Venus, Mars, and Jupiter can be spotted without optical instruments. But one needs binoculars or telescopes to capture Uranus or Neptune, and a clear horizon is required to take a picture of Saturn or Neptune.

Dury used a Sony A7S II camera along with a Sigma 15mm Diagonal Fisheye lens to take the pictures. He tried variations of the ISO and exposure to capture the light coming from the dimmer planets.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Dury said, "I managed to capture a panorama image of the seven planets, AKA - the planetary parade. It is made of nine images, revealing Saturn, Mercury and Neptune. They were very tricky to spot. I used multiple image analysis and astronomy apps to confirm their location. As this was taken with a wide-angle lens, the nine images were stitched to a panorama and an HDR blend of one of the frames to reveal Saturn, Neptune and Mercury. These three planets are not easy to see at all."

On the alignment of the planets, Dury said, "Being close to the sun and in the attempt to photograph them as soon as they were readily visible, the relative positions of these three planets are slightly misaligned due to their approximate visibility from the imaging location and low western cloud."

The planetary parade will reach its climax on Feb. 28. All seven planets will be visible in the night sky around 45 minutes after sunset. It can be seen in most cities and towns across India. Such an alignment will not be seen again until late October 2028.