Planets generally do not twinkle like stars. This phenomenon is due to the following reasons:

1. Apparent Size:

   Planets appear as tiny disks when viewed from Earth, unlike stars, which appear as point sources of light due to their immense distance. Since planets have a larger angular size, the effects of atmospheric disturbances are averaged out.

2. Atmospheric Turbulence:

   Twinkling, or scintillation, is caused by the Earth's atmosphere. As light passes through different layers of air with varying temperatures and densities, it gets refracted (bent) and scattered. For stars (point sources), this refraction causes their light to appear to flicker rapidly, resulting in twinkling.

3. Averaging Effect:

   Because planets appear as small disks, the light from one side of the disk might be bent one way while the light from another part of the disk might be bent a slightly different way. These effects tend to cancel each other out, reducing the twinkling effect.

In summary, the observable size of planets, combined with the averaging effect of atmospheric turbulence across their disks, minimizes the twinkling effect observed for stars.

For more detailed explanations, you can refer to these resources:

• EarthSky: Why don't planets twinkle as stars do?
• Royal Museums Greenwich: Why do stars twinkle?