The skies over Jordan are set to witness a series of astronomical phenomena this week, including a 6-planet alignment, a Mercury-Jupiter conjunction, the Perseid meteor shower peak, and a transit of the International Space Station (ISS), according to Ammar Al-Sakit, President of the Jordanian Astronomical Society.
اضافة اعلان
On Wednesday, the world will experience a total solar eclipse; however, it will not be visible from Jordan or the surrounding Levant region. Al-Sakit noted that the eclipse is among the year's premier astronomical events, explaining that a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, fully or partially obscuring the solar disk depending on the observer's location.
The eclipse will be visible either totally or partially across various regions of the globe. A partial eclipse will be visible in several Maghreb nations—including Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, and Mauritania—while remaining unseen from Jordan and adjacent Levant countries.
Al-Sakit cautioned against looking directly at the Sun during the eclipse without certified, dedicated eclipse glasses, warning that viewing the Sun without proper protective gear can cause severe eye damage.
6-Planet Alignment
In Jordan, an alignment of six planets—Saturn, Neptune, Uranus, Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter—can be observed at dawn on August 12. The optimal viewing window is approximately between 4:45 AM and 5:35 AM Jordan Time, from a location with a clear eastern horizon.
Saturn and Mars will be the easiest to spot with the naked eye. Mercury and Jupiter will appear very low on the horizon amidst the morning twilight, making them more challenging to observe, while Uranus and Neptune require appropriate astronomical equipment, such as binoculars or telescopes.
At dawn on Saturday, August 15, a planetary conjunction between Mercury and Jupiter will take place over the Kingdom's eastern horizon, though dawn twilight may obscure visibility.
By approximately 5:00 AM, the angular distance between the two planets will be around 45 arcminutes, allowing observers to see them close together in the sky. The planets will visually continue to draw closer until reaching a separation of roughly 30 arcminutes at around 1:45 PM Jordan Time; however, the conjunction will not be observable at that hour due to daylight and solar glare.
"No Link Between Planetary Alignments and Earthquakes"
Al-Sakit emphasized that there is no direct scientific connection between natural astronomical events—such as planetary conjunctions, alignments, or visual geometric configurations of celestial bodies—and the occurrence or prediction of earthquakes.
He explained that earthquakes are geophysical processes arising primarily from tectonic plate movements and stress buildup within the Earth's crust, which is subsequently released along fault lines. These dynamic internal processes carry no credible scientific evidence linking them to planetary alignments or conjunctions.
Principles of gravitational physics indicate that the gravitational pull exerted by planets on Earth is negligible compared to internal terrestrial forces. Thus, planetary alignments do not provide an established scientific mechanism for predicting the timing or location of earthquakes.
Although planets may appear adjacent or aligned when viewed from Earth, this proximity is merely a visual perspective in the sky. Earth remains separated from these planets by vast distances spanning hundreds of millions of kilometers, with huge distances separating the planets themselves, rendering their gravitational impact during alignments extremely minimal.
Al-Sakit added that while certain scientific hypotheses have explored weak statistical correlations between astronomical factors and seismic activity, statistical correlation does not imply causation. Planetary alignments are not recognized in seismology as a reliable predictive tool.
He urged the public to obtain information exclusively from specialized scientific and geophysical authorities and reliable sources, rather than falling for unsubstantiated rumors linking planetary alignments to seismic events.
Perseid Meteor Shower
This week coincides with peak activity for the Perseid meteor shower, one of the most famous and popular annual meteor displays for stargazers.
The meteors are best observed from dark sky locations far from city light pollution, particularly during late-night and pre-dawn hours.
ISS Transit Over Amman
The International Space Station will pass over Jordan—specifically above the capital, Amman, and its surrounding areas—at dawn on Saturday, August 15. The station will visually cross the planetary alignment, appearing near Mars.
Al-Sakit clarified that ISS passes occur almost daily as the station orbits Earth roughly every 90 minutes.
The station will emerge from Jordan's southwestern horizon at an azimuth angle of 204 degrees at 5:07 AM Jordan Time, moving toward the northeastern horizon at an azimuth angle of 58 degrees, with the visible pass lasting approximately 6 minutes and 20 seconds.
The ISS will be clearly visible to the naked eye and can be captured using smartphone cameras, reaching a visual magnitude of approximately -3.1.
Functioning as a crewed scientific laboratory orbiting Earth at an altitude of roughly 400 kilometers, the ISS currently houses a crew of seven astronauts conducting scientific research in microgravity.
From Earth's surface, the station appears at specific times as a bright point of light moving steadily and swiftly across the sky.
This week offers a diverse series of astronomical phenomena, providing an opportunity to observe planets, meteors, and the International Space Station from Jordan, alongside the solar eclipse visible elsewhere around the globe.
