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Saturn should be visible as it comes closest to the Earth for 2019

Posted at 11:54 AM, Jul 09, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-09 12:54:03-04

Saturn will be visible tonight with the naked eye, but a telescope will be needed to see its iconic rings.

The planet will shine brighter than at any other time of the year because it will reach "opposition" this evening. That means that Saturn and the sun are on opposite sides of the Earth.

It also will result in Saturn being at its closet point to Earth during 2019.

Space.com reportsthat to view Saturn's rings, a viewer will need a telescope that magnifies to at least 20 power. Those telescopes should also make some of Saturn's largest moons as visible.

Tonight in Corpus Christi, Saturn will rise above the horizon in the southeast around sunset and set in the southwest around dawn on Wednesday.

People who live in the Interior West, southern Plains and Northeast are expected to have the clearest view of the plant thanks to cloud-free skies, Accuweather reports.