Skygazers will be treated to a ‘planetary parade’ tonight as Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all line up in the night sky – here’s how you can tell

British stargazers will be in for a fantastic spectacle tonight as six planets line up in a ‘planetary parade’.

Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will all be visible in a rare event known as a planetary alignment.

And if the weather isn’t in your favor, don’t worry, as this stellar line-up will continue for weeks to come.

Although Mars and Saturn will be visible to the naked eye, you may need binoculars to see all six.

Professor Danny Steeghs from the University of Warwick said: ‘Seeing the alignment will indeed be a challenge as this happens around sunrise and it is also all quite low in the east.’

Planetary alignments happen when several planets all appear on the same side of the sun.

From Earth, it appears that all the planets are arranged in a long diagonal line stretching from east to south across the night sky.

Jupiter will be lowest and furthest to the east, appearing just above the horizon, followed closely by Mercury and Uranus.

Following the line up and south, viewers will see the moon, followed by Mars, Neptune and finally Saturn.

To get the best chance of seeing this alignment, look east just before sunrise, which in Britain should be around 4am on Tuesday.

However, not all planets will be visible to the naked eye and it can be quite difficult to see all the planets at once.

Professor Steeghs says: ‘Uranus and Neptune will be faint, so viewers will need good binoculars to see them.

“Jupiter and even Mercury are very close to the sun, limiting their view.”

The easiest planets to see are Mars and Saturn, which should be visible to the naked eye.

Mars is recognizable by its orange glow, while Saturn should have a yellow-brown color.

You should be able to see these two rising in the sky before the other planets and higher.

For the best vision, try to find a spot where there are no sources of light pollution, such as street lights, and give your eyes enough time to adjust to the darkness.

Professor Steeghs also recommends using mobile apps as a guide to where and when to look in the sky.

He adds: ‘Viewers could set themselves the challenge of trying to see as many as possible, but that requires a clear, uninterrupted view to the east.’

Unfortunately for many avid stargazers in Britain, tonight’s weather may obscure views in certain locations.

Cloud will develop over large parts of Britain from 3am tomorrow morning, with some interruptions over Wales and the Midlands.

The Met Office is also predicting rain over Northern Ireland, extending into the north of England, so make sure you check your local weather forecast before heading out.

Grahame Madge, spokesman for the Met Office, said: ‘There is more cloud cover in parts of Britain compared to the weekend, so this will affect some people’s views.

“There will be some breaks at night that will allow you to catch a glimpse of the night sky.”

However, the alignment will remain in place for a while, so there could be better opportunities later in the week.

Since the outer planets move slowly relative to Earth, there will be a few more planetary alignments with the same set of planets in different orders.

This same group of planets will align again in a different order in August this year and in January 2025.

And in February next year there will be an even more spectacular alignment of seven planets.

However, once this particular configuration is over, it can take hundreds of years to re-establish itself.