On Dec. 21, the night of the winter solstice, two of our solar system’s biggest planets passed by one another in a rare cosmic event known as a planetary conjunction.
During the event, also referred to as the “Christmas Star,” Jupiter and Saturn appeared to unite for a few brief moments and shine as one bright double planet. It was the closest the two planets had appeared from Earth’s vantage in over 800 years.
People and organizations from around the world took to Twitter to share their photos and thoughts about the event.
Here’s a sampling of what they said:
NASA described the conjunction as an international moment of unity and shared an image of the event.
This Las Vegas-based reporter was wowed by image of the conjunction taken from the desert.
Some Twitter uses expressed their misfortunes about not being able to see the event, like this person in Ireland.
The skies above astronaut Time Peake also weren’t ideal for stargazing.
A couple of Twitter users saw the event as an opportunity to crack “Star Wars” jokes.
And this user made a playful reference to “School House Rock!”
This user made her own “Grand Conjunction.”
An account solely dedicated to Katy Perry news reported that the singer and her fiancée, Orlando Bloom, spent the evening watching the conjunction from an observatory.
The Everglades National Park Twitter account posted some stunning images of the “Christmas Star” captured by park staff.