Jupiter-Saturn 2020 alignment photo oportunities

[aaron38]

This image is a Stellarium screen capture of the Jupiter-Saturn 2020 alignment. The zoom feature in Stellarium is quite accurate to what I see in my field binoculars and telescope.

So I'm curious, will the professionally done telescope images be better than this simulated view? To be able to see the Jovian and Saturian systems in detail, in one image? That would be extraordinary.

Over three days Jupiter will approach, pull even with, and then pass Saturn. From Chicago this will all be happening just after sunset, and weather will be a critical factor. So I'm hoping Hubble is still healthy, or something better gets the shot.

 

[CalliArcale]

Oh, sweet!!!!! That will be very cool indeed.

Will professionally done photos be better? Depends on what you mean by better. But I expect that amateurs will be able to produce images as clear as that (minus the lines and text, of course). They already can! For more, I'm going to move this thread over to the Astrophotography forum, so you can hear from the folks who do take pictures like this. Usually, they do it by taking dozens or even hundreds of frames with a CCB and then digitally stacking them. The results can be quite breathtaking.