Catch Jupiter and its great spot in opposition on June 10th (while you still can)

On June 10th Jupiter will meet its opposition. This means that the planet will be at the opposite side of the earth from the sun, so that they all form a straight line. Jupiter will also see its perihelion just two days later on June 12th which means that the planet has reached its closest point to earth in its elliptical orbit. The event allows for perfect viewing of a bright, full Jupiter in the night sky. More details can be found about how to spot the terrestrial object from your location here.

The gas giant and it’s moons can even be spotted with a relatively cheap pair of binoculars. Such a view has changed human thought just centuries ago so be sure to fully take in the sight for all that it’s worth. Those with higher grade telescopes, however, will be able to capture the glory of Jupiter in more detail, including its iconic ‘great red spot’. Although, this great spot on Jupiter's surface won’t be visible forever. In fact records show that its been shrinking for as long as we could make detailed observations of it. Some armature astronomers have even recently captured specs of the storm trailing away from itself.

Despite having a life that may have spanned centuries it is very possible that the storm will dissipate within our lifetimes. Some even believe it will be gone within as close as 20 years. That means if you miss the view on June 10th you’ll only have 19 other opportunities to witness the ravenous storm (roughly).

*Image credit to citizen-scientist Kevin M. Gill using data from the NASA Juno space probe.