Certain parts of the world were treated to a real show this week when Venus, Jupiter and the moon aligned for any stargazers.
All three were visible in the night sky, clearly displayed in a straight line, during a pretty magical occasion – known in official terms as a “conjunction”, this phenomenon is not that rare, but it is breathtaking.
The two planets appeared on either side of the crescent moon, aided by the clear weather on the western horizon. Venus was the brighter one which appeared lower in the sky.
The view appeared just after sunset, and comes at a time in the lunar cycle when 8% of the moon’s surface was lit up.
The UK Space Agency said it came about because the two planets are getting closer. By the start of March, they’ll look like one in the night sky from Earth even though they’ll still be (very) far apart.
It was said to be particularly beautiful above Wales – and comes shortly after a Welsh island called Ynys Enlli, or Bardsey Island, was officially recognised for having one of the best night skies in the world.
So here’s some of the most beautiful pictures taken by stargazers in Wales, when the conjunction was visible to the UK.
But it wasn’t just Wales. Other parts of the UK, Africa and even in Australia spotted the spectacular display too.