One of the most intriguing mysteries in the Bible is the location of the Star of Bethlehem, the star that led the Three Wise Men to the manger where Jesus was born. Astronomers have proposed countless theories about what the star might have been and where it could be located in the galaxy.

According to gospel of Matthew, the Star of Bethlehem or the Christmas Star shone in the night sky to guide the Three Wise Men to Bethlehem. The religious explanation for the star is that it was a miracle created by God to lead the Magi to Jesus but such a suggestion is outside the realm of science. Over the years astronomers have proposed a variety of explanations for the Christmas Star, including a comet, a supernova and a planet. Johannes Kepler back in 1614 hypothesized that the Star of Bethlehem was actually Jupiter and Saturn lining up near each other in the night sky. Other astronomers have proposed different solutions to the mystery.

The first step in figuring out the identity of the Christmas Star is to determine the actual date of Jesus' birth. Finding out the approximate date of Jesus' birth will narrow the suspects in the mystery. Astronomers can look at the unusual sky events that occurred in that that time. It's important to note that Christ's birthday wasn't exactly on December 25. There is no exact reference to the date of the Nativity being December, let alone December 25 in the gospels. According to the gospel of Luke the shepherds were out in their fields making it likely this occurred during the milder months around April to October.

Beyond the date issue there's another consideration. What was the star? A comet, supernova or a configuration of planets. If the Star of Bethlehem was a supernova, or an exploding star that would have shone brightly in the night sky, Chinese astronomers would have made observations about it. But there are no records of any supernova being observed back in the years 3 to 2 B.C. Halley's Comet passed by Earth in 12 B.C. but since the ancients viewed comets as bad omens it wouldn't have been a likely sign of the coming of the Messiah.

If the star actually referred to planets, the explanation would be more likely. There was a rare series of planetary groupings or conjunctions during the years 3 B.C. and 2 B.C. Venus was in conjunction with Saturn on June 12 in 3 B.C. and there was another pairing of Venus and Jupiter on August 12. Another remarkable event was the conjunction of Jupiter with the star Regulus in the Leo constellation. Between September of 3 B.C and June of 2 B.C. Jupiter passed the star three times. And on June 17, Jupiter appeared so close to Venus that they would have appeared as a single majestic star. This sequence of events would have been enough for three wise men to travel to Jerusalem and ask for the King of the Jews.