Saturn hid behind the Moon. “It's cold outside, but it was worth it”

Early Saturday evening it was worth looking at the sky. In the early evening hours, the Silver Globe began to slowly cover Saturn. The phenomenon, also called occultation, was visible to the naked eye, but many astronomy enthusiasts used binoculars and telescopes.

In much of the country, the evening turned out to be clear, which made it easier to observe the phenomenon. At Kontakt24 we received a photo taken just before Saturn was covered by the Moon. Mr. Waldemar, who sent them to us, is passionate about photography and regularly looks out for interesting astronomical phenomena in the sky.

– I read that the phenomenon will be visible in the sky today. So I went out to photograph them. It's cold outside, but it was worth it. This is an unusual phenomenon. From what I have read, the next time we will see them will be in a dozen or so years, said Mr. Waldemar. The photo was taken in Puńsk (Podlaskie Voivodeship).

Very good conditions for observing the phenomenon existed not only in northern Poland, as can be seen in the shot taken in Mysłowice (Silesian Voivodeship).

In Lubraniec (Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship), observation conditions were so good that, with the use of good equipment, Saturn's rings were visible.

As Karol Wójcicki, popularizer of astronomy and author of the profile “With your head in the stars”, wrote on social media, the occultation of Saturn by the Moon is “one of the most interesting astronomical phenomena of the entire 2025”.

The occultation occurred at a low phase of the Moon, and the planet disappeared behind the dark side of our natural satellite. “These are perfect conditions for this type of phenomenon,” added Wójcicki.

Depending on the place on Earth, the phenomenon began at a slightly different time. In our country, the difference was a few minutes. For example, for Warsaw occultation began at 6:41 p.m. The process of covering the planet itself is expected to take about 70 seconds. After about an hour – at 7:41 p.m. – the Moon revealed Saturn, but this process will no longer be visible to the naked eye.

“If you observe with the naked eye, you will be able to notice that at some point the brightness of Saturn will gradually begin to decrease. Covering the planet for 70 seconds will gradually reduce its brightness. The entire phenomenon will occur at approximately 19 degrees above the southwestern horizon,” wrote the popularizer. astronomy.

In addition to the occultation of Saturn by the Moon, the first meteor shower of this year – the Quadrantids – can still be seen in the sky.