Astronomical Calendar & Star Chart Autumn 2026
Top Ten Skygazing Picks
Summer Planet Visibilities
Mercury
Evening — Early October
Morning — Mid-November
Venus
Evening — September
Morning — November
Mars
Morning — September, October, November
Jupiter
Evening — June
Morning — September, October, November
Saturn
Evening — Late September, October, November
Moon Phases Key
New Moon
First Quarter
Full Moon
Third Quarter
Moon Phases
What’s Up?
Meteor Shower Excitement
Continuing meteor viewing from October’s Orionids, are November’s Leonid’s, on Tues., Nov. 17. Best viewed after midnight, go to a dark sky for a steady stream of about 15 swiftly moving meteors per hour. This year the Leonid’s will have an early touch of Moon interference, with the Moon phase at waxing gibbous, but bring binoculars if observing near dawn. The Moon, Jupiter, Mars and the bright star of Leo, Regulus, are gathering closer together, meeting in a beautiful pre-dawn conjunction, on Mon., Nov. 30.
Image credit: Credit: NASA, Bill Ingalls
Space News
Jupiter will cycle into a series of lunar occultations beginning Tues., Sept. 8, concluding on Mon., Nov. 30. This can’t miss rare occurrence will be most visible on Tues., Oct. 6. A lunar occultation, when the Moon blocks the view of a celestial object, happens often with stars but rarely with the largest planet in the solar system. Jupiter, the fourth brightest object in our sky, will disappear behind the Moon, a waning crescent, at 3:20 a.m. EST, and reappear about an hour later. Before robotic spaceflight, an occultation was one of the best ways to study the Jovian moons, atmosphere and cloud belts.
How do I use the star chart?
Hold it out in front of you with the direction you’re facing at the bottom of the chart. It works even better if you hold it above your head and look up at it.
Why are east and west switched?
They are only switched because you’re used to looking at maps of the ground. Hold it above your head, and you’ll see the directions line up just right.