Saturn and Moon Playing Cosmic Hide-and-Seek
In a rare event earlier this month, the Moon occulted Saturn, meaning that from Earth’s perspective, Saturn traveled through the sky behind the Moon.
It was possible to see with the naked eye, although better viewed through binoculars or a telescope. Astrophysicist and exceptional photographer Dr. Gianluca Masi captured the event in remarkable detail using a remote-controlled telescope as part of the Virtual Telescope Project, which Masi founded in Italy in 2006.
As reported by Space, Masi observed the occultation of Saturn by the Moon on January 4, 2025, capturing a series of images that he then used to create the composite seen above.
“The image above comes from the combination of several exposures, remotely taken with the ARTEC250+Paramount ME+C3Pro61000EC robotic unit available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project facility in Manciano, Italy, and covering both the start and the end of the phenomenon,” Masi explains.
The occultation began at 17:43 UTC when Saturn vanished behind the dark portion of the Moon. The waxing crescent Moon was about 25% illuminated that night. 47 minutes later, Saturn reappeared, emerging from behind the illuminated area of the Moon.
“What a memorable view, we were happy to bring the opportunity to see this to the worldwide community,” Masi writes.
The entire event was live-streamed by The Virtual Telescope Project on YouTube, a replay of which is available below.
The Virtual Telescope Project offers remote real-time access to several robotic telescopes. Provided by the Bellatrix Astronomical Observatory in Italy and managed by Dr. Masi, the project relies upon generous donations to stay alive, as it provides free and limited-cost access to people all around the world who would otherwise be unable to participate in astronomy.
“We believe everyone has the right to access and discover our wonderful universe, as this makes us better humans,” the project says.
Image credits: The Virtual Telescope Project / Dr. Gianluca Masi. Thanks largely to donations, the Virtual Telescope Project can provide free and low-cost remote telescope access to budding astronomers worldwide. Additional information about the project and options to donate are available on its website.
