The planets line up: 3 May 2002

Look to the west after sunset and you may be able to see five of the planets. Jupiter will be high in the sky and should appear to be the brightest object high in the west. Look down towards the right and you can see Saturn, Mars (dimly), brilliant white Venus and, low on the horizon, Mercury.

Also notable are the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters - the cluster of stars below Mercury.

This image was created for a viewer located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, looking at the sky at 20:00 UT May 3 2002. Note that the size of the planets is not to scale.