There is probably little new information that can be learned from occultations of major planets events in this age of space exploration, but they are still interesting to watch. Photometric records, possibly derived from video recordings, could be used to determine the sizes of asteroids, although timings of occultations of stars by minor planets give more accurate information. - D. Dunham.
Below are world maps, showing all the events for the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn, Neptune, and minor planet Ceres.
The are no occultations of Jupiter or Uranus in 2024.
Following the world maps for are detailed predictions for events which are practical to observe. No occultations predictions are given for remote areas, nor are occultation predictions shown if the planet is too close to the sun time of the occultation.
Observers are strongly encouraged to download the free software Occult v4 to generate their own predictions. Occult has a short tutorial listed in the help file to get observers started using the software. Observers could also use their own planetarium type software (e.g. TheSky, SkySafari, Guide, Stellarium, etc), to get approximate times of the events.
Where a line represent a feature of the event is located in the polar regions, remember that the Mercator projection gives rise to serious distortions in polar regions.
DD = disappearance on dark side; DB = disappearance on bright side; RD = Reappearance on dark side; RB = Reappearance on bright side
Note: Cities will be prefixed with their 2 letter country code. Those for the United States will also include the 2 letter state code after the city. For a complete listing of the 2 letter country codes used in the predictions please download this PDF file for reference.
How to convert the predicted time to your site location time using the A/B factor shown in the predictions
WORLD MAPS OF KNOWN OCCULTATIONS OF THE FOLLOWING PLANETS FOR 2024
Occultations of Mercury
DATE | PLANET | MAG | PH | % ILL | AREA |
07 APR 2024 | Venus | -3.8m | DD | 2- | e USA, S Mexico, Central America, Caribbeans |
05 MAY 2024 | Mars | 1.1m | DD | 13- | Madagascar |
31 MAY 2024 | Saturn | 1.2m | RD | 43- | s South America |
01 JUN 2024 | Neptune | 7.9 | RD | 34- | s South Africa, Madagascar |
23 JUN 2024 | Ceres | 7.5m | RD | 98- | e Canada, central & e USA, ne Mexico, Cuba, Caribbeans |
27 JUN 2024 | Saturn | 1.1m | RD | 64- | e Australia, New Zealand |
28 JUN 2024 | Neptune | 7.9 | DD | 58+ | nw South America |
24 JUL 2024 | Saturn | 0.9m | RD | 84- | se Asia |
21 AUG 2024 | Saturn | 0.7m | RD | 97- | n South America, w Africa Europe |
21 AUG 2024 | Neptune | 7.8m | RD | 93- | Europe, w Asia, n Africa, Middle East |
17 SEP 2024 | Saturn | 0.6m | DD | 99+ | w USA, w Canada, Hawaii |
14 OCT 2024 | Saturn | 0.7m | DD | 89+ | se Africa, s central Asia |
15 OCT 2024 | Neptune | 7.8m | DD | 80+ | Middle East, Asia |
12 NOV 2024 | Neptune | 7.8m | DD | 80+ | USA, e Canada, Greeland |
08 DEC 2024 | Saturn | 1.0 | DD | 47+ | Indonesia |
09 DEC 2024 | Neptune | 7.9m | DD | 58+ | ne Asia, Japan, Alaska |
18 DEC 2024 | Mars | -0.9 | RD | 89- | ne Canada, Greenland |