Is Saturn REALLY close to Earth on June 1st 2016? Or May 2016?

Images and rumours are spreading online that claim the planet Saturn will be exceptionally close to Earth during May or June 2016.

Certain memes (below) illustrate an obviously unrealistic image of Saturn across the horizon, while many fake news websites have claimed that during June 3rd 2016, Saturn will be closer to Earth than it has been in 10,000 years.

Basically, it is all nonsense.

Obviously the image above has just been digitally altered, and only the extremely astronomically-oblivious could be inclined to believe that such a spectacle could actually occur.

Further claims made by many websites – including a site called Now88News.com – that Saturn will be exceptionally close to Earth on June 3r 2016, are also exaggerating muchly.

Saturn is close to Earth during the latter stages of May 2016 and early June 2016, which are the best times to view Saturn during the course of this year. But in comparison to every other year, Saturn is not exceptionally close to Earth. The claim that it has never been this close to us for over 10,000 years is total nonsense.

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Sea and Sky maintains a very exhaustive database of celestial events each year and it is worth checking their calendar when faced with these types of rumours. June 3rd references ‘Saturn in Opposition’ meaning it will appear slightly brighter than it normally does –

The ringed planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. It will be brighter than any other time of the year and will be visible all night long. This is the best time to view and photograph Saturn and its moons. A medium-sized or larger telescope will allow you to see Saturn’s rings and a few of its brightest moons.

However, unless you plan on viewing Saturn through a very powerful scope, Saturn will – as it normally does when it’s visible – appear as a mere white blip in the sky, albeit slightly brighter.

Any claims that Saturn will appear as anything else are simply untrue.