February 2026 – What’s Up!

Week of 23rd February

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 19:28 GMT at the start of the week and at 19:38 GMT by the end of the week.
• The Sun has just one disappearing active region and looks spotless, the first time it has had no sunspots since 2022. This is a sign of things to come as we move away from Solar Maximum.
• Catch Venus (-3.9), Mercury (+0.3), Saturn (+1.1) and Neptune (+7.9) low to the southwestern horizon after sunset, which is around 17:36 GMT this week. Uranus (+5.7) is close to the Moon and the Pleiades in the South, and Jupiter (-2.5) transits at around 21:00 GMT this week. We’re just missing Mars for the full set, but this won’t be easily visible until the autumn.
• Head to Cancer for this week’s observing challenge; start with double star, Tegmine (+5.6) with an angular separation of 5.9″, then on to open cluster, M44 (+3.1), the Beehive Cluster, and finish with an easier double star, Iota Cancri (+4.0) with a separation of 31″.
• The Moon is First Quarter on Tuesday.
• The Sun currently has 1 active region and the sunspot number is 11.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 16th February

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 19:16 GMT at the start of the week and at 19:26 GMT by the end of the week.
• 2026, the year of the eclipse, starts with an annular solar eclipse on Tuesday. However, you need to be in Antarctica on Tuesday morning to see anything yourself! Check on line for live streams of the eclipse.
• Mercury reaches Greatest Eastern Elongation on Thursday, making it well placed for observation in the evening sky. Look in the southwest after sunset, which is at 17:29 GMT. Venus will be at an altitude of about 5° and Mercury will be at about 12°. Take great care of the Sun if trying to find the planets in binoculars. The thin Crescent Waxing Moon will be just a few degrees above these two planets.
• Jupiter (-2.5) transits at around 21:15 GMT this week.
• Head to the deep south for this week’s observing challenge, starting at just 13° above the southern horizon in the constellation of Puppis with the open cluster M93 (+6.2). Move up about ten degrees to find M46 (+6.1) and M47 (+4.4). Finish in Hydra with M48 (+5.8).
• The Moon is New on Tuesday.
• The Sun currently has 5 active regions and the sunspot number is 60.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 9th February

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 19:05 GMT at the start of the week and at 19:14 GMT by the end of the week.
• Jupiter (-2.6) transits at around 22:00 GMT this week, setting at about 06:10 GMT. There is a good GRS transit starting at 20:19 GMT on Friday.
• Auriga is well placed at the moment, so it is time to enjoy the three main open clusters in ‘the Chariot’. Start with M38 (+6.4), the Starfish Cluster, then on to nearby M36 (+6.0), the Pinwheel Cluster, and finally to M37 (+5.6) just outside the pentagon asterism.
• The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday.
• The Sun currently has 8 active regions and the sunspot number is 128.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).

Week of 2nd February

• Astronomical Twilight ends at 18:53 GMT at the start of the week and at 19:03 GMT by the end of the week.
• We are approaching the end of this apparition of Saturn (+1.1) as it now sets at around 21:00 GMT this week. It is ever closer to the western horizon, so the view is deteriorating. Get out and spot the planet before it disappears until the autumn!
• Jupiter (-2.6) is moving through Gemini and transits at around 22:30 GMT this week.
• This week the deep sky challenge is a tough one, you will need a larger aperture to hunt down the objects. Start to the east of Alnitak in Orion’s Belt to search for M78 (+8.3), the brightest reflection nebula in the sky, but tricky to spot. Then move across to Monoceros, the Unicorn, to find the Rosette Cluster, NGC 2244 (+4.8) at the centre of the Rosette Nebula, a beautiful target for the astrophotographer. Good luck!
• The Moon is Waning Gibbous all week.
• The Sun currently has 9 active regions and the sunspot number is 126.
• There are no visible evening ISS passes this week (click here for full ISS pass details).