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Solar conjunction

Solar system object is on the opposite side of the Sun from the Earth

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
1 min read
Source updated April 29, 2025
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Solar conjunction generally occurs when a planet or other Solar System object is on the opposite side of the Sun from the Earth. From an Earth reference, the Sun will pass between the Earth and the object. Communication with any spacecraft in solar conjunction will be severely limited due to the Sun's interference on radio transmissions from the spacecraft.

The term can also refer to the passage of the line of sight to an interior planet (Mercury or Venus) or comet being very close to the solar disk. If the planet passes directly in front of the Sun, a solar transit occurs.

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This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Solar conjunction”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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Related topics

Conjunction (astronomy)

In astronomy, a conjunction occurs when two astronomical objects or spacecraft appear to be close to each other in the sky. This means they have either the same right ascension or the same ecliptic longitude, usually as observed from Earth.

List of conjunctions (astronomy)

This is a list of the planetary conjunctions visible from Earth between 2005 and 2030. In astronomy, a conjunction is an event, defined only when using either an equatorial or an ecliptic celestial coordinate system, in which any two astronomical objects (e.g.

Opposition (astronomy)

In positional astronomy, two astronomical objects are said to be in opposition when they are on opposite sides of the celestial sphere, as observed from a given body. A planet (or asteroid or comet) is said to be "in opposition" or "at opposition" when it is in opposition to the Sun.