Overview
- The six-planet configuration occurred in the pre-dawn sky on Wednesday, August 12, with Mercury, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune arrayed along the ecliptic before local sunrises.
- Optimal viewing windows were tied to each location’s sunrise, generally about 25–45 minutes before dawn, with New York’s guide time near 5:18–5:34 a.m. and Los Angeles near 5:28–5:46 a.m.
- Jupiter, Mars and Saturn were the easiest to spot with the naked eye while Uranus usually required binoculars and Neptune needed a telescope, and Mercury was often low and hard to see from many sites.
- Observers were urged to choose a dark site with a clear eastern horizon, arrive early to let eyes adapt, use astronomy apps or star charts for exact positions, and never point unfiltered optics toward the Sun.
- There was no single official global livestream of the event and local visibility depended heavily on clouds, haze, terrain and light pollution even as the new moon and Perseids peak improved chances for many viewers.