A cloudy sky will take away a rare astronomical event that would’ve set off the start of the winter season across the region.

The Great Conjunction, also known as “The Christmas Star,'' happens every 20 years when Jupiter and Saturn appear to pass each other and align in the night sky. So, what makes this year rare? Well, it’s been nearly 400 years since the planets passed this close to each other in the night sky.

What we would’ve seen is Jupiter and Saturn appearing as a bright star in the southwestern sky an hour after sunset. We'll just have to wait another 20 years.