Starting this weekend, sky gazers will see a rare view of Jupiter’s enormity as it appears its biggest and brightest in decades. Jupiter will be one of the most brilliant natural objects, if not the most, in the night sky.
Telescopes in space will also be able to capture a better view of the gas giant for the next couple of months, Thaller said. The recently launched James Webb Space Telescope has already captured an exceptional image of the planet in remarkable detail. The image, created from several composites, shows auroras above the northern and southern poles of Jupiter.
As Jupiter makes its rare approach and opposition, admire one of the biggest physical reasons we are here. “There are so many cool things about Jupiter,” Thaller said. “It will look particularly big and bright over the next couple of weeks. It will just be beautiful.”