Jupiter and Mars to appear side-by-side in ‘uncommonly beautiful’ cosmic event on Sunday

Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Get our free Health Check email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The planets Jupiter and Mars will appear side-by-side in the sky on Sunday morning, in a cosmic event described as "uncommonly beautiful". Though the planets are more than 350 million miles apart, for a brief period they will appear as if they are orbiting the Sun close together – giving them the appearance of “very bright stars”. “The planets will initially appear straight down in a vertical line with Jupiter above and Mars underneath, but as they move apart they will appear as a diagonal line, with Jupiter on the top left and Mars on the bottom right.” Despite being more than 369 million miles apart, the planets will appear to be very close together, forming a nearly straight line with the Earth – an event known in astronomy as a syzygy. While conjunctions are not uncommon, Mr Kerss says the planets’ close approach will be “uncommonly beautiful, particularly when they appear so bright or show colour”.