Sky calendar

Month by month from November 2026 to October 2027: when the meteor showers peak and whether the Moon will spoil them, the Moon's phases, which planets are on view, and the best nights to watch from the UK.

Month by month

Meteor showers this year, and the Moon

"Good" means at least three hours of dark sky with the radiant well up and no bright Moon; "fair" means a shorter window or some moonlight; "poor" means a bright Moon for most of the night.

Highlights of the year

• Monday 16 November 2026: Mars and Jupiter close together. Mars and Jupiter appear only about 1° apart, in the morning sky. Binoculars show both in the same view.
• Saturday 21 November 2026: Mercury at greatest western elongation. Mercury is 19° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the morning sky before sunrise. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the east, 30 to 45 minutes before sunrise.
• Wednesday 25 November 2026: Uranus at opposition. Uranus is opposite the Sun and at its best for the year, up all night at magnitude 5.6. It is just visible to the eye from a very dark site, and easy to find with binoculars and a star chart.
• Sunday 3 January 2027: Venus at greatest western elongation. Venus is 47° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the morning sky before sunrise.
• Wednesday 3 February 2027: Mercury at greatest eastern elongation. Mercury is 18° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the evening sky after sunset. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the west, 30 to 45 minutes after sunset.
• Thursday 11 February 2027: Jupiter at opposition. Jupiter is opposite the Sun in the sky: it rises at sunset, is up all night and is at its brightest for the year, at magnitude −2.4. It is 652 million kilometres from Earth.
• Friday 19 February 2027: Mars at opposition. Mars is opposite the Sun in the sky: it rises at sunset, is up all night and is at its brightest for the year, at magnitude −1.2. It is 101 million kilometres from Earth.
• Saturday 20 February 2027: Penumbral eclipse of the Moon. The Full Moon passes through the pale outer part of Earth's shadow from 21:12 to 01:13 UTC, deepest at about 23:13. It is visible from the whole of the UK, high in the southern sky. The change is subtle: look for a faint grey shading on one edge of the Moon around the middle of the eclipse.
• Wednesday 17 March 2027: Mercury at greatest western elongation. Mercury is 28° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the morning sky before sunrise. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the east, 30 to 45 minutes before sunrise.
• Friday 28 May 2027: Mercury at greatest eastern elongation. Mercury is 23° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the evening sky after sunset. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the west, 30 to 45 minutes after sunset.
• Friday 16 July 2027: Mercury at greatest western elongation. Mercury is 21° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the morning sky before sunrise. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the east, 30 to 45 minutes before sunrise.
• Monday 2 August 2027: Total eclipse of the Sun (partial from the UK). Totality, lasting over six minutes at its longest, crosses southern Spain, North Africa and Egypt. From the UK it is a partial eclipse in the morning, at its greatest at about 10:00 BST, with roughly 40 per cent of the Sun's face covered in southern England and less further north, about a quarter in central Scotland. Never look at the Sun directly or through binoculars or a telescope: use proper eclipse glasses or project the image onto card.
• Friday 24 September 2027: Mercury at greatest eastern elongation. Mercury is 26° from the Sun, as far as it gets on this swing, and in the evening sky after sunset. Mercury is always low and hard to spot from the UK; look for it in a clear sky low in the west, 30 to 45 minutes after sunset.
• Monday 18 October 2027: Saturn at opposition. Saturn is opposite the Sun in the sky: it rises at sunset, is up all night and is at its brightest for the year, at magnitude 0.5. It is 1,249 million kilometres from Earth.

How to use the calendar

Meteor showers happen on the same dates each year, when Earth passes through a trail of dust left by a comet or asteroid. What changes from year to year is the Moon. A bright Moon in the sky drowns out all but the brightest meteors, so the same shower can be superb one year and disappointing the next. Each month's page shows the Moon's phase for every day, when it rises and sets on shower nights, and which nights are free of moonlight.

The Moon goes through its phases in about 29.5 days. Around New Moon it is close to the Sun and out of the sky at night, which gives the darkest skies. At first quarter it sets around midnight, leaving the early-morning hours dark, which is often when meteor rates are highest. At Full Moon it is up all night. At last quarter it rises around midnight and lights the rest of the night.

Times are UK clock time for central England. Elsewhere in the UK, the rising and setting times of the Moon and planets can differ by up to about three-quarters of an hour, and nights are shorter in the north in summer. Shower peak times can vary by a few hours from the predictions, and some showers produce surprises.