Look out the window! 5 planets visible in the night sky

(WJW) – Look out the window tonight! Five planets will be visible on Tuesday, including Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, and Uranus.

Venus and Mars will be easy to identify. Venus will be the largest and brightest planet in the sky and will be located in the west after sunset.

Mars will appear bright red and will be high in the southwestern sky.

Jupiter, the second brightest planet, wouldn’t be easy to spot. Jupiter was high in the sky earlier this month but has been slowly declining. To view Jupiter, you’ll need a clear, unobstructed view of the western horizon. Mercury will also be close to Jupiter.

Local astronomer Jay Reynolds said March and April are the best time of year to see Mercury easily.

Uranus may be the most difficult to identify without a telescope. It will appear dimmer, and look very similar to a star.

“(Uranus) is too dim and the Sun is too bright in the western sky to be seen easily. If you have good telescope skills you will have a crack in seeing it, but the view will appear poor,” Reynolds said.

You might be able to see Mercury too, but Reynolds said it’s not the most impressive compared to the others.

“It’s all about how the western sky tilts almost straight up and down in the spring so we can see Mercury better. Even when you see it, it’s not impressive. The only reason to look is so you can say, ‘I’ve seen Mercury,'” Reynolds said.

Reynolds said around 7-8 p.m. would be the best time to catch these planets in the sky.

Alexis Walters, a Fox 8 meteorologist, said the sky should be clear enough to see the planetary alignment on Tuesday night.

“We’ll have a few clouds hanging over, so if you don’t see them in that time, give it a couple minutes and the clouds will disappear from the viewing area as they move across the sky,” Walters said.

Click here for the full Northeast Ohio forecast.