COLUMBIA, S.C. — As we close out the month of March we will have the chance to see some planets in our night sky.
For the last few weeks, Mars and Venus have been easily visible in our evening sky. The last few nights have been a different story with plenty of rain and even thunderstorms blocking our view.
You may have hear over the next few days we will be able to see 5 planets in our night sky. And while it is true that there will be 5 planets, not all will be easily visible for multiple reasons.
Let's talk about Uranus first, this planet is over 1.8 BILLION miles from the Sun. Because of this, it appears very faintly in our night sky. So faint, that you really need a telescope to see it well, especially with any light pollution nearby.
Moving on to Jupiter and Mercury, while these planets are typically easily spotted given the right conditions, they will be very low on the horizon near sunset. That means you will need to be in a place like a wide open field and hope that you can see them. The sky will still be pretty bright so binoculars may be needed to see Jupiter, but Mercury might be too dim to spot.
So what can you actually see? Well, the same we have had for the last few days. Mars, Venus and the Moon will all be easily visible in the night sky with Mars and the Moon nearby if you look almost straight up after sunset.
The weather will also be a concern tonight with mostly cloudy skies starting to go away between 8-9 PM. Places like the Upstate will see clearer conditions before the Midlands tonight. If you are in the Low Country you might just want to wait until tomorrow.
