April 2026 – What’s Up!

Week of 27th April

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 22:47 BST at the start of the week and at 23:07 BST by the end of the week.
• Bright Venus (-3.9) sets in the west at around 22:58 BST this week, spot the planet just after sunset, which is at around 20:25 BST. Jupiter (-2.0) transits at around 18:04 BST and sets at 02:15 BST.
• The Full Moon and ever later darkness make for a challenging deep sky challenge this week! We are heading North and start with a double star that is often overlooked, Polaris (+2.0) in Ursa Minor, is famous for its position rather than composition; it is a lovely double with a separation of 18 arcseconds. Move 20° towards the Zenith to find the wonderful galaxy pair of Bode’s Galaxy, M81 (+6.9) and the Cigar Galaxy, M82 (+8.4). They make a great target together for the astrophotographer.
• The Moon is Full on Friday – the Flower Moon.
• The Sun currently has 7 active regions and the sunspot number is 154.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 20th April

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 22:26 BST at the start of the week and at 22:44 BST by the end of the week.
• The Lyrid meteor shower is predicted to peak at around 20:00 BST on Wednesday. It has a maximum ZHR of around 18 meteors per hour, so not the most productive of showers, but worth having a look out during the night and keep an eye on the radio live stream. The shower’s progenitor is comet C/1861 G1 (Thatcher). It is one of the oldest recorded meteor showers, seen by the Chinese over 2,500 years ago!
• Venus (-3.9) is low to the western horizon around sunset, setting at 22:36 BST this week. Jupiter (-2.1) transits at around 18:28 BST and sets at 02:40 BST.
• Three objects low in the South provide this week’s deep sky challenge. Start with the double star Porrima, Gamma Virginis (+3.5), in Virgo with a separation of 3.6″. Move down a few degrees to M104, the Sombrero Galaxy (+8.0) in the lower reaches of Virgo, and then finish just a few degrees above the southern horizon with globular cluster M68 (+7.3) in the constellation of Hydra.
• The Moon is First Quarter on Friday.
• The Sun currently has 3 active regions and the sunspot number is 44.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 13th April

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 22:07 BST at the start of the week and at 22:23 BST by the end of the week.
• Venus (-3.9) is bright near our western horizon around sunset, setting at 22:13 BST this week. Jupiter (-2.1) transits at around 18:52 BST and sets at 03:05 BST.
• The constellation of Canes Venatici, the Hunting Dogs just below the handle of the Plough, is our destination this week. A trilogy of galaxies awaits, the more aperture the better! Start with the classic Whirlpool Galaxy, M51 (+8.4) at 28 million lightyears away, then on to M63, the Sunflower Galaxy (+8.6) at 27 Mly, and end with M94, the Croc’s Eye Galaxy (+8.2) at 17 Mly. All are fuzzy blobs in the eyepiece, astrophotography will reveal more structure.
• The Moon is New on Friday.
• The Sun currently has 3 active regions and the sunspot number is 42.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 6th April

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 21:50 BST at the start of the week and at 22:05 BST by the end of the week.
• Spot Venus (-3.9) low in the west after sunset; the planet sets at 21:50 BST this week. Jupiter (-2.2) transits at around 19:17 BST and sets at 03:30 BST.
• We’re going for double stars this week, starting with Tegmine, Zeta Cancri (+5.6) with a separation of 6″, then on to Algieba, Gamma Leonis (+2.2) at 4.7″, across to Alula Australis, Xi Ursae Majoris (+3.8) at 2.7″, and finish with Izar, Epsilon Bootis (+4.7) at 2.9″. Good luck!
• The Moon is Last Quarter on Friday.
• The Sun currently has 7 active regions and the sunspot number is 113.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).