5 planets will align in an arc across the night sky next week

Sky-gazers will be treated to a parade of planets near the end of month when Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, Uranus and Mars will appear together in the night sky.

Sky-gazers will be treated to a parade of planets near the end of month when Jupiter, Mercury, Venus, Uranus and Mars will appear together in the night sky.

On March 28, a large planetary alignment will take place when the five planets appear just after sunset, all within a 50-degree sector of the sky, according to sky tracking site Starwalk.

Jupiter and Mercury will appear near the horizon, in the constellation Pisces, while Venus will be visible higher in the sky on the constellation Aries, the sky-tracking site noted.

Next, Uranus will line up nearby but a pair of binoculars may be required to get a glimpse of the planet. Finally, Mars will appear higher in the sky, near the moon, to complete the five-planet alignment.

"Although March 28 is the best day for observation, the alignment will be visible several days before and after that date," the website explained.

If the weather isn't in your favour next week, there will be other opportunities to catch a planetary alignment this year, including another five-planet alignment on June 17. Mercury, Uranus, Jupiter, Neptune, and Saturn will be on parade that evening.