The alignment of the planets, known as the Great Conjunction, happens every 20 years on average, but this is the closest they have been in 400 years, appearing just 0.1 degrees apart in the sky.
However, you have to go back 800 years for the last time they were so close and entered conjunction after sunset - the only time the planets can be visible.
In times of old, people may not have understood that a seemingly new appearance of a star may have been a planetary conjunction, which has led some to believe the Great Conjunction could be attributed to the Star of Bethlehem.
| UPDATED: 14:42, Mon, Dec 21, 2020
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Also known as the Star of Bethlehem, the Christmas Star is seen as a result of Jupiter and Saturn aligning as part of the so-called Great Conjunction. The Great Conjunction is a term coined by astronomers to describe the close passing of the two large planets, and it occurs around every 20 years. This passing is the closest recorded in hundreds of years, creating a spectacular event in the sky , that will make the planets appear as one star - despite both still being around 400 million miles from one another.
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Jupiter and Saturn will cross paths on Monday during the closest Great Conjunction since 1623 and the closest visible conjunction since 1226. At their closest, the two gas giants will pass within 0.1 degrees in the southwestern sky which is less than one-fifth of the Full Moon s width. And since the close passage falls just four days before Christmas, many people believe the two planets will appear as one on Monday night.
| UPDATED: 07:15, Mon, Dec 21, 2020
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Tonight (December 21) just four days before Christmas, the planets Jupiter and Saturn will come within touching distance of one another. This rare event is known as a Great Conjunction and only happens once every 20 years. The upcoming conjunction is special, however, as the two planets will be closer to each other than at any point in the last 400 years.
| UPDATED: 07:23, Mon, Dec 21, 2020
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The planets Jupiter and Saturn will come together tonight (Monday, December 21), to form what some have called the Christmas Star of 2020. The astronomical phenomenon is officially known as a Great Conjunction and only happens once every 20 years. But tonight s spectacle promises to be exceptional as the two gas giants will come within 0.1 degrees of each other - the closest visible conjunction in nearly 800 years.