Saturn at opposition

When and where to watch in 2023: Around its August 26-27 opposition, Saturn is rising in the east at sunset and visible all night. Afterward, for the rest of 2023 Saturn will remain visible in the evening sky. It’ll finally disappear in the sunset glare by mid-February 2024.

Date and time of opposition: 8 UTC on August 27, 2023 (3 a.m. CDT).
Brightness at opposition: At opposition, the ringed planet shines at its brightest for 2023, at magnitude 0.4.
Distance from Earth at opposition: Around opposition, Saturn is at its least distance from Earth for 2023, at 73 light-minutes (about 8.8 astronomical units).
Constellation at opposition: Aquarius the Water Bearer.
Disk size at opposition: Saturn’s disk size is largest around opposition. At its largest, Saturn will appear 19 arcseconds across.
Ring tilt at opposition: At opposition, Saturn’s rings are tilted by 8.1 degrees, relative to earthly viewers. The rings will span 44.2 arcseconds.
Note: Opposition marks the middle of the best time of year to see an outer planet. Even though you can’t see Saturn’s rings through binoculars, it’ll appear through binoculars as a bright oval-shaped disk. But any small backyard telescope will show the rings.