People in New Zealand who have a clear view of the western horizon tonight will be in for an intergalactic treat.
Jupiter and Venus will be visible in the sky on Thursday night. The two planets will be easily seen together in the west and will look like a "double star".
The planets coming together is known as a conjunction, which is when two or more objects appear to pass close to each other when looking at the sky.
"[As] long as people have clear views towards their western horizon, they should be able to see both planets close together in the sky," Stardome astronomer Rob Davison told Newshub.
"This will be around sunset 8 - 9pm before both planets follow the Sun below the horizon."
Davison said the planets will be easily spotted if the skies are clear on Thursday night.
"They will appear like two bright stars very close to each other. As they will be following the Sun towards the west, it should be as simple as looking in that direction just after sunset."
Davison told Newshub the pair being in the sky at the same time is a result of the orbits of the planets around the Sun and how we then see them in our skies at different points in time.
"As the planets of the solar system all orbit the Sun at different rates, there will be times when they appear to pass close to each other from our perspective here on Earth."
He said it will be significant because it will be one of the easier conjunctions to observe.
"This will be one of the best and easiest-to-view conjunctions between these planets for the next several years. The next similar ones will be in the morning just before sunrise in August 2025 and November 2028," Davison said.
"As the planets will be quite low in the sky, people should try to get a clear view of the western horizon if they want to see them away from houses, trees or hills."
