See 3 planets stretch across Iowa's September sky
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Another year's lineup. Photo: Alan Dyer/VW PICS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Early risers can spot three bright planets stretching across the morning sky for the rest of the month, and they won't need a telescope to see them.
Why it matters: Saturn, Mars and Jupiter can all be seen, weather permitting, in September's early morning hours, per EarthSky.
How it works: The planets will spread in a long arc along the ecliptic — the path the Sun, Moon and planets follow — like lights strung across the sky.
- To see all three, head outside before dawn and scan from east to west: Jupiter will be the bright one in the east, followed by reddish Mars and Saturn farther west.
- Currently, Saturn rises shortly after sunset and is up most of the night, with Mars appearing after midnight and Jupiter joining around 3:45am.
What's next: The Orionid meteor shower begins later this month, building toward its peak around Oct. 23, when up to 20 meteors an hour may streak across dark skies.
⭐️ The bottom line: Sounds like the perfect reason to attend one of Drake Municipal Observatory's free fall lectures.
- The next one is at 8pm Friday.