12 spectacular night sky events to see in 2026—from a total eclipse to impressive auroras
With major eclipses, brilliant supermoons, and lineups of five or more planets, 2026 offers something awe-inspiring in every season. Here’s what to watch for.
If you’ve been waiting for a good year to start paying attention to the night sky, 2026 makes a strong case. There’s a supermoon in early January, plus a six-planet alignment and total lunar eclipse, all before St. Patrick’s Day. The real showstopper—a mid-year total solar eclipse—will put mainland Europe on the path of totality for the first time since 1999. With a moonless Perseid meteor shower and multiple planetary lineups still ahead, the year offers no shortage of reasons to look up. Here’s what to watch for this year.
January 3: Supermoon nears Jupiter
A supermoon kicks off the first weekend of the new year in style. Catch the luminous full moon alongside Jupiter the evening of Saturday, January 3. It appears brighter and bigger than your average moon because during a supermoon, the moon is near perigee—its closest point to Earth.
For the most dramatic view, watch the moon rise around sunset. Its size doesn’t actually change, but an optical effect known as the moon illusion makes it appear larger when it’s low on the horizon. January’s full moon is traditionally called the “wolf moon,” a name linked to wolves’ increased vocal activity during winter months.
January 10: Jupiter at opposition
Jupiter takes center stage mid-month as it reaches opposition on January 10—the point when Earth lies right between the gas giant and the sun. This alignment brings Jupiter closer to Earth than it’s been since December 2024. It will appear slightly brighter and larger than usual on both January 9 and 10. It won’t get this bold again until 2027.
To find it, head out around sunset and gaze eastward. It’s located in the Gemini constellation this month, and it will remain above the horizon throughout the night, forming a makeshift triangle with Sirius and Orion’s Belt.
Late February: Evening planetary alignment
The last week of February brings a six-planet alignment, also known as a planet parade, to the evening sky. Right after sunset, watch for Venus, Mercury, and Saturn in the west. The trio will hang low, in a tight grouping near the horizon; all three are visible to the unaided eye. Nearby Neptune is also present, but it requires a telescope. Speaking of: If you are heading out this night, wait until after the sun fully sets before pointing optical devices toward the western horizon.
National Geographic History Magazine
Jupiter appears higher in the southern sky, shining close to the moon. Uranus lies near the easily recognizable Pleiades star cluster, though spotting the ice giant will require a telescope or strong binoculars.
March 3: Total lunar eclipse
Early on the morning of March 3, a total lunar eclipse will paint the moon in eerie orange hues. It’s known as a blood moon, and while the name sounds scary, the science behind it is straightforward. As Earth moves between the sun and the moon, its shadow completely covers the lunar surface. Shorter blue wavelengths scatter in Earth’s atmosphere, while longer red and orange wavelengths bend through it, giving the moon its coppery glow.
(Learn more about the three types of lunar eclipse.)
Sky-watchers can spot the total lunar eclipse across much of North and South America, the Pacific, and large parts of Asia and Oceania. Observers in the western U.S. and Canada, the Pacific islands, and New Zealand will have the best view, with an uninterrupted start-to-finish view. Those in the continental U.S. will still see much of the marvel, including the blood moon, but sunrise will cut part of the eclipse short.
If you’re looking for a lunar eclipse to watch in 2026, this is your show. That said, there is another partial lunar eclipse from August 27 to 28; it won’t have the full blood moon effect, but it will appear as though a shadowed “bite” has been taken from the moon. It will be best viewed from parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia.
March 20: Spring equinox—and above-average auroras
In the Northern Hemisphere, the spring equinox brings more than promises of warmer weather and longer days. The equinoxes often produce powerful aurora displays, likely due to Earth’s tilt. Pair this timing with the already heightened lights activity from the sun’s 11-year activity peak from 2024 to 2025—which will continue to bring strong sightings in 2026—and we could see exceptional displays in late spring.
Even better: March is a smart time to chase the aurora in Alaska, as clearer nights and an activity uptick mean even more frequent lights observations.
June 8-9: Venus-Jupiter conjunction
On the evenings of June 8 and 9, Venus and Jupiter will appear just over 1 degree, or a pinky finger’s distance, from each other above the western horizon. Mercury will be visible nearby for roughly an hour after the sun sets, too.
While Venus and Jupiter are nearest June 8 and 9, the pairing remains striking for days afterward. Bookmark June 17, when the pair perfectly aligns with Mercury and the crescent moon.
August 7: Moon occults Pleiades
Peer east just after midnight on August 7, when the rising crescent moon begins to pass in front of the Pleiades star cluster. One by one, the cluster’s brightest stars will disappear behind the moon before reemerging closer to dawn. They’ll reappear around an hour before sunset. Mercury, Mars, and Saturn will also be visible in the pre-dawn sky.
The star-gobbling spectacle, known as an occultation, appears throughout much of the contiguous U.S. This phenomenon allows astronomers to measure the precise sizes, positions, and motions of celestial objects by tracking how their light disappears and reappears.
You May Also Like
You can spot the moon occulting Pleiades soon after sunset again on October 27.
August 12: Total solar eclipse
The Super Bowl of stargazing—a total solar eclipse—is coming on August 12, and the backdrop couldn’t be more enticing. The path of totality crosses portions of the Arctic Ocean, eastern Greenland, western Iceland, a sliver of remote Portugal, and northern Spain. Spectators along this narrow track can watch the moon slide between Earth and the sun, entirely blocking all but the fiery fringes of the latter. It turns day into a temporary dusk; as a result, animals, like crickets, emerge.
(Here are other surprising ways animals react to solar eclipses.)
Stargazers in certain areas right outside the path, including parts of Croatia, Denmark, and Austria, will also enjoy a partial eclipse.
The entire event spans roughly five hours, with the moon slowly slipping across and then away from the sun. The most theatrical phase, totality, lasts just one to two minutes. That’s relatively brief when compared to the 2024 total solar eclipse over North America, where totality lasted up to four and a half minutes in certain areas. The much-hyped solar eclipse in Egypt in 2027 will bring false dusk for over six minutes.
Even so, this August spectacle isn’t one to sleep on—it’s mainland Europe’s first total solar eclipse since 1999. Solar filters are essential for viewing the eclipse, except during totality, when the sun’s bright disk is completely blocked.
August 12-13: Perseid meteor shower peak
Stargazers couldn’t ask for better conditions for the 2026 Perseid meteor shower. They are famed for fast, bright meteors because Earth plows directly through debris left by comet Swift–Tuttle. The peak of activity from August 12 to 13 coincides with a new moon. That means lunar light won’t interfere with the show as it did in 2025, and from a remote area with dark skies, these settings could deliver up to around 90 meteors per hour.
The Perseids remain active well beyond mid-August. The entire meteor shower runs from July 14 to September 1 in 2026; you could see meteors soaring any night during this period. Keep watch for exceptionally brilliant meteors, known as fireballs. The only caveat: You’ll have to stay up late. The Perseid meteor shower is most impressive from midnight to dawn.
November 25: Supermoon
The year’s second supermoon rises on November 25. It hits peak illumination on Thanksgiving Eve. As before, the view gets extra dramatic around moonrise, which coincides with sunset. The November full moon is traditionally known as the “beaver moon,” but some know it as “frost moon.”
December 23: Closest supermoon of 2026
The closest—and largest-appearing—supermoon of the year arrives on December 23, just days before the holidays. Known as the “cold moon,” it looks especially dramatic as it rises in the early evening. And it’s not the only after-dark spectacle to watch. Jupiter and Mars will appear slightly below the moon along the eastern horizon just before midnight, with Saturn visible above the western horizon after sunset as well.
(How to photograph a supermoon.)
Late December: Planetary alignment
The year finishes much as it began: with an exceptional alignment of planets in the night sky. Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Saturn, and Neptune will appear together around 10 p.m. local time, with the bright moon traveling between them as the holiday week unfolds. As Saturn and Neptune set in the pre-dawn hours, Venus will soar above the eastern horizon to create a second planet alignment before sunrise.
You can admire the planet parade through the end of the year, but December 25 and 26 will be especially striking. Mars, Jupiter, and the waning gibbous moon will form a diagonal line above the eastern horizon, then travel in this procession until the dawn breaks.
