Saturn
Saturn at opposition
When and where to watch in 2025: Around its September 21 opposition, Saturn is rising in the east at sunset and is visible all night. Afterward, for the rest of 2025, Saturn will remain visible in the evening sky. It’ll finally disappear in the sunset glare in February 2026.
Date and time of opposition: 6 UTC on September 21, 2025 (1 a.m. CDT).
Brightness at opposition: At opposition, the ringed planet shines at its brightest for 2025 at magnitude 0.6.
Distance from Earth at opposition: Around opposition, Saturn is at its shortest distance from Earth for 2025, at 71 light-minutes (about 8.55 astronomical units).
Constellation at opposition: Saturn will be in front of Pisces the Fish and move in front of Aquarius the Water Bearer by month’s end.
Disk size at opposition: Saturn’s disk size is largest around opposition. At its largest, Saturn will appear 19.4 arcseconds across.
Ring tilt at opposition: At opposition, Saturn’s rings are tilted by 2 degrees, relative to earthly viewers. That’s very narrow. Saturn’s rings are nearly edge-on from Earth. In March 2025, when we crossed the plane of Saturn’s rings, they temporarily seemed to disappear!
