Last Chance To See ‘Planet Parade’ This Weekend Before Mercury Sinks

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Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter will cluster low on the evening horizon this weekend in a rare planetary alignment visible shortly after sunset. Skywatchers have only a narrow window to catch the sight before Mercury drops too low in the sky to observe. The three planets create what astronomers call a "planet parade", a fleeting celestial event that draws amateur and professional stargazers alike. Such alignments occur periodically but remain brief spectacles, typically lasting only days or weeks before orbital mechanics shuffle the planets back to their usual positions across the night sky.