Give me five minutes, I'll give you Saturn in 2009
I want you to see Saturn at its best in March 2009.
In its yearly orbit around the sun, our planet Earth goes between Saturn and the sun every year. In 2008, that happened on February 24. In 2009, this event – called an “opposition” of Saturn – will happen on March 8. That makes March of 2009 the best month for seeing this most amazing and beautiful of planets. Will you be ready? Save this article!
Can you see the rings of Saturn if you look with the eye alone? No.
But you can see this bright golden world with your unaided eye. It will appear as a bright golden “star” … very beautiful!
And since Saturn moves only slowly with respect to the true stars, once you notice the starry pattern around Saturn, you can spot this planet for months on end.
Okay. How can you see Saturn?
In early March, 2009 … first, think about the fact that – when Earth goes between the sun and Saturn – Saturn appears opposite the sun in our sky. So, if you’re looking for Saturn in the evening, you should be facing east, with your back to the sunset direction.
To see Saturn, go outside after nightfall in March, 2009. Stand facing east (your back to the place where the sun went down). Remember … around the time that Earth goes between the sun and Saturn, Saturn appears opposite the sun in our sky. So if the sun has just gone down, Saturn will be on the horizon, probably too low in the sky to see. So wait until mid-evening or so, when it’s good and dark, and Saturn is higher in the sky.
What makes it possible to pick Saturn out from the multitude of glittering stars?
The answer is that Saturn will be bright. In fact, every year around the time we go between the sun and Saturn, the ringed planet is at its closest to Earth and brightest in our sky.
In late February and early March of 2009, Saturn will be the brightest “star” ascending in the east after sunset. So if you are outside in the evening – looking in the direction opposite the sunset – you can’t miss seeing it.
What’s more, Saturn is near a recognizable pattern of stars in 2009. Well … hopefully recognizable, once you tune your eyes to noticing patterns on the sky’s dome. This pattern has the shape of a backwards question mark. It’s part of the constellation Leo the Lion, and it’s known as “the Sickle” in Leo. The brightest star in the Sickle is blue-white Regulus, whose name means “little king.”
If you see an object you think is Saturn, look for this star, Regulus, to the upper right at nightfall. Notice the color contrast between Regulus and Saturn. Regulus is blue-white. Saturn is golden.
Once you start looking carefully, you might even notice that Regulus is twinkling, while Saturn is shining more steadily. You know the old folk wisdom about stars twinkling and planets shining with a steady light? It’s true.
In March, 2009, and beyond … After March 8 – when Earth goes between Saturn and the sun – Earth will be fleeing ahead of Saturn in the race of the planets around the sun. That fact will place Saturn higher in the east at sunset every evening, beginning in March 2009. Saturn will begin appearing fainter throughout April than it was in March. But it’ll still be nearly the same position relative to Regulus, in the constellation Leo, as our chart shows.
The ringed planet Saturn is the sixth planet outward from the sun. In 2009, we’ll be looking at Saturn’s rings pretty much edge-on, so this year is not a good year to see these rings through a telescope.
It takes nearly 30 years to orbit the sun. Earth is the third planet, and our orbit takes only one year. That’s why we go between the sun and Saturn nearly every year.
Oppositions of Saturn happen about two weeks later with each passing year. The 2010 opposition of Saturn will be on March 22, 2010. This year’s opposition is on March 8, 2009. The 2008 opposition was on February 24, 2008. The 2007 opposition was on February 10, 2007, and the 2006 opposition was on January 27, 2006.
Saturn, as seen by the Cassini spacecraft.
Check out more favorite Saturn pictures:
Saturn’s cloudtops, viewed at an angle
A gas giant planet, rings and shadows
Saturn backlit, Earth from a billion miles away
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Deborah,
I have been looking at Saturn for the last month with a 100mm refractor and can just make out the rings. My ? is, what’s the forcast for the rings in 09.
Thanks.
David
David,
The south side of Saturn’s rings were inclined by about 1.5 degrees when you saw them in early February. These rings are opening up right now, the south side of the rings to show a maximum exposure of 4.15 degrees by mid-May. Thereafter, the rings will begin to close again, shrinking to 0 degrees (edge-on) by September 4. Then, we’ll start to see the north side of Saturn’s rings, and they’ll be just shy of 5 degrees tilted by January 1, 2010. For more details, check out page 231 of the Observers Handbook 2009.
Bruce