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Ephemeris: 02/23/2026 – The Moon passes the Pleiades tonight

February 23, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Monday, February 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 52 minutes, setting at 6:22, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:28. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 2:18 tomorrow morning.

Tonight around 11o’clock the Pleiades star cluster will be just to the lower left of the nearly first quarter Moon. It will be very hard to spot them near the bright Moon, however they might be spotted with binoculars. Tonight the Moon will not occult or pass in front of the Pleiades’ brightest stars. The best time to see the Moon near or occulting the Pleiades is when it’s a crescent, and doesn’t overwhelm them, which will be later on this spring. However, the Moon passes by the Pleiades about a month apart, but they occur either in the afternoon or the morning hours so it won’t be as spectacular. The moon will also have close passages of the planet Venus this spring . The closest approach will be on May 18th.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

The nearly first quarter Moon will be passing north of the Pleiades this evening.
The nearly first quarter Moon will be passing north of the Pleiades this evening. The Moon actually far outshines the Pleiades, so one will have to view this event with binoculars or a low power telescope. The stars might be better seen by putting the Moon just out of the field of view. This display is actually centered on the star Alcyone the brightest star of the six of the Pleiades that are visible. This is an alt-azimuth orientation, where up is up and down is down. The sky rotates as it moves from east to west. During this period the Moon and Pleiades will be moving from the southwest down to the west-northwestern horizon. This display is for Northern Michigan. The apparent relationship between the Moon and the Pleiades changes with the observer’s location. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
Categories: Conjunction, Ephemeris Program, Observing Tags: ,

Ephemeris: 02/20/2026 – The star that’s called “Before the Dog”

February 20, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Friday, February 20th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 43 minutes, setting at 6:18, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:33. The Moon, 3 days past new, will set at 10:21 this evening.

The star Procyon is in Orion’s little hunting dog, Canis Minor, which contains only one other star. It can be found by using the shoulder stars of Orion, Bellatrix and Betelgeuse, pointing to the left and down a bit to Procyon at 9 PM. With Jupiter above, Betelgeuse to the right and Sirius below, it makes an imposing diamond of stars. The word Procyon means “Before the Dog” meaning that rises before the Dog Star, Sirius, even though it is east of it. Procyon is also north of Sirius, which for observers above 30° north latitude, it does indeed rise before the Dog Star. It is a star like Sirius, though it’s not as bright, or white. Procyon is 11.5 light years away while Sirius is 8.6. Both have tiny white dwarf companion stars.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

How to find Procyon and Canis Minor.
How to find Procyon and Canis Minor with the help of Orion’s stars Betelgeuse and Bellatrix (at the top of the “n” in Orion). Jupiter, Betelgeuse, Sirius and Procyon make a temporary diamond in the winter sky this year. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Observing, Star Names Tags: ,

Ephemeris: 02/18/2026 – Taking our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets

February 18, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Ash Wednesday, February 18th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 37 minutes, setting at 6:15, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:36. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 7:52 this evening.

Let’s take our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets. After sunset Venus may show up very low in the West probably before 7:00 PM. Above Venus, tonight, will be the 1 1/2 day old Moon and above it and very close, the planet Mercury making a rare appearance in our evening sky. At 8 PM Saturn remains low in the west southwestern sky, and it will set before 9 PM. In a telescope Saturn sports a very thin ring, 3.1 degrees from being edge on and is slowly opening. Jupiter is the brilliant star-like object more than halfway up in the east-southeastern sky. It’s the brightest star-like object in the sky. It is still moving to the west, but is slowing down and will stop and reverse its course 20 days now.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Saturn appears with Mercury, the Moon and maybe even Venus in the west-southwestern sky at 7 PM tonight.
Saturn appears with Mercury, the Moon and maybe even Venus in the west-southwestern sky at 7 PM tonight February 18, 2026, or 45 minutes after sunset. The planet Mercury will most likely be dimmer than it appears here. It is always hard to spot in the twilight, though being just above the Moon will help tonight. Start looking for it around 6:45 PM or about a half hour after sunset. Created using Stellarium.
A closeup of Mercury and the day and a half old Moon.
A closeup of Mercury and the day and a half old Moon. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 18, 2026, in its orientation at 9:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini. Also shown is its track from last July to next July, and the retrograde loop that is currently making.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 18, 2026, in its orientation at 9:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini. Also shown is its track from last July to next July, and the retrograde loop that is currently making, slowly moving to the West which it will do for the next 20 days until it stops (becomes stationary) on March 10th. Then it will resume its eastward motion. The inset shows a magnified view of the west end of the retrograde loop. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter as they would be seen in a small telescope with the same magnification at 9 PM tonight.
Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope with the same magnification at 9 PM tonight, February 18, 2026. Saturn will be 16.1″ in diameter, but its rings, being nearly edge on, may show up brighter than seen here, and extend to 37.4″. They are tilted 3.1° from being edge on. Jupiter will be 44.0″ in diameter. Earlier in the evening Mercury may be glimpsed just a bove the day and a half old Moon. Its too small to be represented here, because it’s only 7.0″ in diameter and is 52.8% illuminated. If you’re lucky enough to spot Venus, it’s 10″ in diameter and 98.4% illuminated. The (”) symbol means seconds of arc, or 1/3600th of a degree. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts), LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 18th, 2026. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 19th. The Moon and Mercury labels overlap near the sunset sun. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.
A low precision ephemeris of the Sun, Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow, February 18th and 19th, 2026
This is a low precision ephemeris of the Sun, Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow, February 18th and 19th, 2026. Some of the columns are self-explanatory, others are not. The transit column is the time that the body crosses the meridian and is due south. Elong, for elongation, is the angle between the Sun and that body. RA is right ascension, which is the object’s east-west position on the celestial sphere in hours and minutes. Dec is declination which is the north-south position of the object on the celestial sphere in degrees and minutes. R is the distance of that object from the Sun in astronomical units. An astronomical unit is about 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers. And Delta is the distance of that object from the Earth, also in astronomical units. I omit the ‘m’ in am and pm for compactness. The data was generated using my LookingUp for DOS app and displayed as a table by my Ephemeris Helper app.

Categories: Ephemeris Program, Naked-eye planets, Observing Tags: , , , , ,

Ephemeris: 02/16/2026 – The Dog Star

February 16, 2026 Comments off

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for President’s Day, Monday, February 16th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 31 minutes, setting at 6:12, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:39. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 7:51 tomorrow morning.

The second-brightest star-like object in the evening sky is Sirius, also known as the Dog Star. It also is the brightest nighttime star in our skies period.  Tonight at 9 p.m. it’s located in the southern sky.  The Dog Star name comes from its position at the heart of the constellation Canis Major, the great dog of Orion the hunter.  The three stars of Orion’s belt tilt to the lower left to Sirius. Sirius means ‘Dazzling One’, because of its great brilliance and twinkling.  Its Egyptian name was Sopdet, and its first appearance in the dawn skies around July 20th signaled the flooding of the Nile, and the beginning of the agricultural year.  The relationship of the heliacal rising of Sirius and the seasonal or tropical year lasted from about 2900 BCE to the start of the Common Era. Sirius owes much of its brilliance to the fact that it lies close to us, only 8.6 light years away.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Orion's belt points to Sirius
In the southern sky, Orion’s belt points to Sirius. Created using Stellarium, Libreoffice and GIMP.
The Egyptian used the heliacal rising of Sirius as a signal that the flooding of the Nile was imminent, starting their agricultural year.
The Egyptians used the heliacal rising of Sirius as a signal that the flooding of the Nile was imminent, starting their agricultural year. The Greeks called the star Sothis, while the Egyptians themselves called it Sopdet, a goddess, and consort of the god Sah, our Orion. Part of my presentation on ancient Egyptian astronomy.

Trivia Note

The Greeks invented the term “Dog days of summer” for the hottest days of July because they thought that Sirius added its intensity to the heat of the Sun to make it hotter out. So why doesn’t Sirius help warm our winter nights? Just asking.

Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Mythology, Observing, Stars Tags: , , , ,

Ephemeris: 02/11/2026 – Taking our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets

February 11, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, February 11th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 16 minutes, setting at 6:05, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:47. The Moon, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 5:00 tomorrow morning.

Let’s take our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets. Before twilight fades, Mercury may be spotted low in the west below and right of Saturn. Binoculars may help in finding it. Saturn is the brightest star-like object low in the west southwestern sky as soon as it gets dark, and it will set before 9:30. In a telescope Saturn sports a very thin ring, 2.6 degrees from being edge on and is slowly opening. Jupiter is the brilliant star-like object more than halfway up in the east-southeastern sky. It’s the brightest star-like object in the sky. It is still moving to the west, but is slowing down and will stop and reverse its course a month from now. Jupiter’s 4 brightest moons can be seen even in binoculars, if held steadily enough. They shift position night to night. At 8 PM tonight, all four Galilean moons can be seen.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Saturn appears with Mercury in the west-southwestern sky at 7 PM tonight.
Saturn appears with Mercury in the west-southwestern sky at 7 PM tonight February 11, 2026. The tin planet Mercury will most likely be dimmer than it appears here. It is always hard to spot in the twilight. Start looking for it around 6:45 PM or about a half hour after sunset. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 11, 2026, in its orientation at 9:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini. Also shown is its track from last July to next July, and the retrograde loop that is currently making, slowly moving to the West which it will do for the next 27 days until it stops on March 10th. Then it will resume its eastward motion. The inset shows a magnified view of the west end of the retrograde loop.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 11, 2026, in its orientation at 9:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini. Also shown is its track from last July to next July, and the retrograde loop that is currently making, slowly moving to the West which it will do for the next 27 days until it stops on March 10th. Then it will resume its eastward motion. The inset shows a magnified view of the west end of the retrograde loop. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.

Tomorrow, I’ll discuss, more fully, why planets are seen to move in retrograde motion.

The Moon 3 days past last quarter, as seen tomorrow morning, February 12, 2026, at 6 am. A view visible in small telescopes showing an image with and without selected features labeled. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw, and GIMP.

R

Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope with the same magnification at 8 PM tonight.
Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope with the same magnification at 8 PM tonight, February 11, 2026. Saturn will be 16.2″ in diameter, but its rings, being nearly edge on, may show up brighter than seen here, and extend to 37.7″. They are tilted 2.8° from being edge on. Jupiter will be 44.4″ in diameter. Earlier in the evening Mercury may be glimpsed. Its too small to be represented here, because it’s only5.9″ in diameter and is 79.6% illuminated. The (”) symbol means seconds of arc, or 1/3600th of a degree. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts), LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 11th, 2026. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 12th
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 11th, 2026. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 12th. The Venus and Mercury labels overlap near the sunset sun. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.
A low precision ephemeris of the Sun Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow.
This is a low precision ephemeris of the Sun Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow, February 11th and 12th, 2026. Some of the columns are self-explanatory, others are not. The transit column is the time that the body crosses the meridian and is due south. Elong, for elongation, is the angle between the Sun and that body. RA is right ascension, which is the object’s east-west position on the celestial sphere in hours and minutes. Dec is declination which is the north-south position of the object on the celestial sphere in degrees and minutes. R is the distance of that object from the Sun in astronomical units. An astronomical unit is about 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers. And Delta is the distance of that object from the Earth, also in astronomical units. I omit the ‘m’ in am and pm for compactness. The data was generated using my LookingUp for DOS app and displayed as a table by my Ephemeris Helper app.
Categories: Ephemeris Program, Naked-eye planets, Observing Tags: , , , , ,

Ephemeris: 02/09/2026 – Orion’s amazing belt stars

February 9, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Monday, February 9th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 11 minutes, setting at 6:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:50. The Moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 3:01 tomorrow morning.

Orion’s belt of three stars is one of the most noticeable star groupings in the sky. There are no other groups of three bright stars in a straight line visible anywhere else in the sky. The star’s names from left to right are Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka. They are actually a bit farther away than the other bright stars of Orion. Alnilam, the center star, is over three times the distance of red giant Betelgeuse above them and over twice as far as blue white giant star Rigel below them. Alnilam is 375 thousand times brighter than the Sun. These three stars were also known as Frigga’s Spindle by the Norsemen. Frigga, also known as Freya, is the goddess from which we get the name of the day of the week we call Friday.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

The body of Orion much as we see it, in the south, at 9 PM in the first half of February. The image below expands and enhances the inset.
The body of Orion much as we see it, in the south, at 9 PM in February. The image below expands and enhances the inset. Created using Stellarium.
A close up look at the stars and nebulae around Orion’s belt and sword. The only nebula not visible visually with optical aid is the Horsehead Nebula. Photo credit: Daniel Dall’Olmo.

Categories: Asterism, Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Observing, Stars

Ephemeris: 02/05/2026 – The celestial unicorn

February 5, 2026 Comments off

Feb 5. This is Ephemeris for Thursday, February 5th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours even, setting at 5:57, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:55. The Moon, halfway from full to last quarter, will rise at 10:34 this evening.

Among all the constellations in the sky of animals real and mythical, there is also a unicorn. It’s called Monoceros, and inhabits the southeastern sky at 8 p.m. mostly bounded by Orion on the right, Canis Major, the great dog below and Canis Minor, the little dog to the left and above. Unfortunately for observers without a telescope Monoceros, is devoid of any but the faintest stars. Maybe that’s why no one sees unicorns anymore. Though it lacks bright stars Monoceros is full of wonders revealed by telescopes and photography. A feast of faint nebulae or clouds of gas and dust, the birthplace of stars, including the red rose of the Rosette Nebula, and the more recently named Hagrid’s Dragon Cluster (NGC 2301).

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Monoceros
Monoceros finder chart animation. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
The Rosette Nebula,
The Rosette Nebula, NGC 2244, is an accurate description of this nebula. The stars in the center cause the hydrogen gases to glow red. The hottest and brightest young stars give off ultraviolet light which causes the gases to fluoresce. Also, the stellar winds from these stars blows away gases from the center, so star formation stops. Leaving a beautiful rosette in the sky. Unfortunately it’s too faint to see with the telescope visually, however it is a wonderful target for astrophotographers. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Credit: Dan Dall’Olmo, a member of the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society.
The brighter stars of NGC 2301, Hagrid's Dragon Cluster,
The brighter stars of NGC 2301 (Hagrid’s Dragon Cluster, AKA Great Bird Cluster and Copeland’s Golden Worm). It’s also in two other catalogs: Cr 119 and Mel 54. Created using Stellarium and GIMP. Dragon from “Dragon Flying Cycle” on YouTube by Simon Hussey.
Deep Sky Objects around Monoceros
Deep Sky Objects in and around Monoceros. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
Categories: Constellations, Deep Sky Object, Ephemeris Program, Observing Tags: , ,

Ephemeris: 02/04/2026 – Taking our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets

February 4, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, February 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 57 minutes, setting at 5:55, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:56. The Moon, 3 days past full, will rise at 9:25 this evening.

Let’s take our weekly look at the whereabouts of the naked-eye planets. Saturn is the brightest star-like object low in the west southwestern sky as soon as it gets dark. In a telescope Saturn sports a very thin ring, 2.4 degrees from being edge on and is slowly opening. Jupiter is the brilliant star-like object in the eastern sky, to the right of Pollux in the pair Castor and Pollux, the bright stars of Gemini. It is still moving slowly to the west, and will, until it stops and reverses its track on March 10th. Jupiter’s four brightest moons can be seen even in binoculars, if held steadily enough. They shift position night to night. At 8 PM tonight, all four Galilean moons can be seen, though two may too close together to be picked out separately in binoculars.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Saturn appears lonely in the west-southwestern sky at 8 PM
Saturn appears lonely in the west-southwestern sky at 8 PM. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 4, 2026, in its orientation at 8:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini.
Jupiter as it appears tonight, February 4, 2026, in its orientation at 8:00 PM moving against the stars of Gemini. Also shown is its track from last July to next July, and the retrograde loop that is currently making, slowly moving to the West which you will do for the next 34 days until it stops in March. Then it will resume its eastward motion. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
The Moon halfway from full to last quarter, as seen tomorrow morning, February 5, 2026. A view visible in small telescopes showing an image with and without selected features labeled. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw, and GIMP.
Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope.
Telescopic Saturn, and Jupiter (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope with the same magnification at 8 PM tonight, February 4, 2026. Saturn will be 16.3″ in diameter, but its rings, being nearly edge on, may show up brighter than seen here, and extend to 37.9″. They are tilted 2.4° from being edge on. Jupiter will be 45.4″ in diameter. The (”) symbol means seconds of arc, or 1/3600th of a degree. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts), LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 4th, 2026. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 5th.
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on February 4th, 2026. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 5th. The Venus and Mercury labels overlap near the sunset sun. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp app and GIMP.
A low precision ephemeris of the Sun Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow, February 4th and 5th, 2026.
This is a low precision ephemeris of the Sun Moon and naked eye planet positions for today and tomorrow, February 4th and 5th, 2026. Some of the columns are self-explanatory, others are not. The transit column is the time that the body crosses the meridian and is due south. Elong, for elongation, is the angle between the Sun and that body. RA is right ascension, which is the object’s east-west position on the celestial sphere in hours and minutes. Dec is declination which is the north-south position of the object on the celestial sphere in degrees and minutes. R is the distance of that object from the Sun in astronomical units. An astronomical unit is about 93 million miles or 150 million kilometers. And Delta is the distance of that object from the Earth, also in astronomical units. I omit the ‘m’ in am and pm for compactness. The data was generated using my LookingUp for DOS app and displayed as a table by my Ephemeris Helper app.

Categories: Ephemeris Program, Naked-eye planets, Observing Tags: , , , , ,

Ephemeris: 02/03/2026 – Canis Major, Orion’s greater hunting dog

February 3, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, February 3rd. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 55 minutes, setting at 5:54, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:58. The Moon, 2 days past full, will rise at 8:14 this evening.

What kind of hunter would the constellation Orion be without his trusty hunting dogs.  The larger of his two dogs is Canis Major which can be found if you extend Orion’s belt stars down to the left.  There in the southeast by 8 PM, will appear the brightest nighttime star Sirius the Dog Star.  It is in the heart of the dog, which appears to be begging.  Well it’s tilted funny.  Other than that it’s a pretty good representation of a dog as a stick figure.  The name Sirius doesn’t mean Dog Star, but means Dazzling One due to its great brightness.  It outshines all other nighttime stars, only to be out shown by the planets Venus, Jupiter and occasionally, Mars.  Binoculars will show a nice little star cluster a short ways below Sirius known as M41.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

Finding Orion's greater hunting dog, Canis Major.
Finding Orion’s greater hunting dog, Canis Major for approximately 8 PM, February 3, 2025. Bonus: also includes Canis Minor. Jupiter won’t be where it is next year. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Observing Tags: ,

Ephemeris: 01/30/2026 – Previewing February skies

January 30, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Friday, January 30th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 44 minutes, setting at 5:48, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:02. The Moon, 2 days before full, will set at 7:31 tomorrow morning.

February is the shortest month, even so the daylight hours throughout the month will be getting longer. Daylight hours will increase from 9 hours and 49 minutes Sunday to 11 hours and 7 minutes on the 28th. The sunrise time will decrease from 8:01 Sunday to 7:21 at month’s end. The sunset times will increase from 5:51 today to 6:29 on the 28th. Along with that the altitude of the Sun at noon will increase from 28.4 degrees today to 37.6 degrees at month’s end. It will be a degree lower, and daylight a few minutes shorter, for folks in the Straits area because they are a degree of latitude farther north. Local noon, by the way for Interlochen and Traverse City will be about 12:56 PM at mid month.

The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.

Addendum

February Evening Star Chart

Star Chart for February 2026.
Star Chart for February 2026, (9 p.m. EST February 14, 2026). Created using my LookingUp program. Click on image to enlarge.

The planets and stars are plotted for the 14th at 9 PM EST in the evening and 6 AM for the morning chart. These are the chart times. Note that Traverse City is located approximately 45 minutes behind our time meridian. (An hour 45 minutes behind our daylight saving time meridian during EDT). To duplicate the star positions on a planisphere (rotating star finder) you may have to set it to 45 minutes or one hour 45 minutes (Daylight Time) earlier than the current time.

Note the chart times of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. are for the 14th and 15th. For each week before these dates, add ½ hour (28 minutes if you’re picky). For each week after, subtract ½ hour. Planet positions on dates other than the 15th can be found in the Wednesday planet posts on this blog.

February Morning Star Chart

Star Chart for February mornings, 2026 (6 a.m. EST February 15, 2026).
Star Chart for February mornings, 2026 (6 a.m. EST February 15, 2026). No naked-eye planets are visible at chart time. Created using my LookingUp program. Click on image to enlarge.

For a list of constellation names to go with the abbreviations, click here.

  • Pointer stars at the front of the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris, the North Star.
  • Follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper to the star Arcturus, and
  • Extend like a spike to Spica,
  • The Summer Triangle is in red.

Twilight Limits, Nautical and Astronomical

      EST        
  Morning Twilight Evening Twilight Dark Night Moon
Date Astro. Nautical Nautical Astro. Start End Illum.
2026-02-01 6h22m 6h56m 19h00m 19h34m – – 100%
2026-02-02 6h21m 6h55m 19h01m 19h35m – – 98%
2026-02-03 6h20m 6h54m 19h03m 19h37m 19h37m 20h14m 94%
2026-02-04 6h19m 6h53m 19h04m 19h38m 19h38m 21h25m 88%
2026-02-05 6h18m 6h52m 19h05m 19h39m 19h39m 22h34m 80%
2026-02-06 6h17m 6h51m 19h06m 19h40m 19h40m 23h41m 72%
2026-02-07 6h16m 6h50m 19h08m 19h42m 19h42m – 63%
2026-02-08 6h15m 6h49m 19h09m 19h43m 19h43m 0h48m 53%
2026-02-09 6h13m 6h47m 19h10m 19h44m 19h44m 1h55m 44%
2026-02-10 6h12m 6h46m 19h12m 19h45m 19h45m 3h01m 35%
2026-02-11 6h11m 6h45m 19h13m 19h47m 19h47m 4h04m 26%
2026-02-12 6h10m 6h43m 19h14m 19h48m 19h48m 5h01m 18%
2026-02-13 6h08m 6h42m 19h15m 19h49m 19h49m 5h50m 11%
2026-02-14 6h07m 6h41m 19h17m 19h50m 19h50m 6h07m 6%
2026-02-15 6h06m 6h39m 19h18m 19h52m 19h52m 6h06m 2%
2026-02-16 6h04m 6h38m 19h19m 19h53m 19h53m 6h04m 0%
2026-02-17 6h03m 6h37m 19h21m 19h54m 19h54m 6h03m 1%
2026-02-18 6h01m 6h35m 19h22m 19h56m 19h56m 6h01m 3%
2026-02-19 6h00m 6h34m 19h23m 19h57m 21h06m 6h00m 9%
2026-02-20 5h58m 6h32m 19h24m 19h58m 22h21m 5h58m 16%
2026-02-21 5h57m 6h31m 19h26m 19h59m 23h39m 5h57m 25%
2026-02-22 5h55m 6h29m 19h27m 20h01m – 5h55m 35%
2026-02-23 5h54m 6h27m 19h28m 20h02m 0h59m 5h54m 47%
2026-02-24 5h52m 6h26m 19h30m 20h03m 2h19m 5h52m 58%
2026-02-25 5h51m 6h24m 19h31m 20h05m 3h33m 5h51m 69%
2026-02-26 5h49m 6h23m 19h32m 20h06m 4h37m 5h49m 79%
2026-02-27 5h47m 6h21m 19h34m 20h07m 5h28m 5h47m 87%
2026-02-28 5h46m 6h19m 19h35m 20h09m – – 94%

Twilight calendar was generated using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).

See my blog post: Twilight Zone for the definitions of the different periods of twilight here: https://bobmoler.wordpress.com/2019/09/27/

NASA Calendar of Planetary Events

Feb  1  Su            Venus: 6.3° E
     1  Su   6:41 AM  Moon-Beehive: 1.3° S
     1  Su   5:09 PM  Full Moon
     2  Mo   9:48 PM  Moon-Regulus: 0.4° S
     3  Tu   2:18 PM  Moon Descending Node
     7  Sa   3:26 AM  Moon-Spica: 2° N
     9  Mo   7:43 AM  Last Quarter
    10  Tu  11:52 AM  Moon Apogee: 404600 km
    10  Tu  10:19 PM  Moon-Antares: 0.8° N
    12  Th   7:56 AM  Moon South Dec.: 28.4° S
    17  Tu   7:01 AM  New Moon
    17  Tu   7:13 AM  Annular Solar Eclipse
                      Southern Ocean and Antarctica
    18  We   1:19 AM  Moon Ascending Node
    19  Th  12:59 PM  Mercury Elongation: 18.1° E
    19  Th   6:54 PM  Moon-Saturn: 4.8° S
    23  Mo   9:43 PM  Moon-Pleiades: 1.2° S
    24  Tu   7:28 AM  First Quarter
    24  Tu   6:18 PM  Moon Perigee: 370100 km
    25  We   6:23 PM  Moon North Dec.: 28.4° N
    27  Fr   1:26 AM  Moon-Jupiter: 4° S
    28  Sa   3:07 PM  Moon-Beehive: 1.3° S
Mar  1  Su            Venus: 13° E

Sky Events Calendar by Fred Espenak and Sumit Dutta (NASA’s GSFC),
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SKYCAL/SKYCAL.html
If you go to the above site you can print out a list like the above for the entire year or calendar pages for your time zone.

Sun and Moon Rising and Setting Events

LU             Ephemeris of Sky Events for Interlochen/TC
February, 2026    Local time zone: EST
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| DATE |  SUN     SUN  DAYLIGHT|   TWILIGHT*    |MOON  RISE OR    ILLUM |
|      |  RISE    SET    HOURS |  END    START  |PHASE SET** TIME FRACTN|
+=======================================================================+
|Sun  1| 08:01a  05:51p  09:49 | 06:57p  06:55a |Full  Rise 05:41p  100%|
|Mon  2| 08:00a  05:53p  09:52 | 06:58p  06:54a |      Rise 07:00p   99%|
|Tue  3| 07:59a  05:54p  09:55 | 07:00p  06:53a |      Rise 08:14p   95%|
|Wed  4| 07:58a  05:55p  09:57 | 07:01p  06:52a |      Rise 09:25p   89%|
|Thu  5| 07:56a  05:57p  10:00 | 07:02p  06:51a |      Rise 10:34p   82%|
|Fri  6| 07:55a  05:58p  10:03 | 07:04p  06:50a |      Rise 11:41p   73%|
|Sat  7| 07:54a  06:00p  10:05 | 07:05p  06:49a |      Rise 12:48a   64%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun  8| 07:52a  06:01p  10:08 | 07:06p  06:47a |      Rise 01:55a   55%|
|Mon  9| 07:51a  06:02p  10:11 | 07:07p  06:46a |L Qtr Rise 03:01a   46%|
|Tue 10| 07:50a  06:04p  10:14 | 07:09p  06:45a |      Rise 04:03a   36%|
|Wed 11| 07:48a  06:05p  10:16 | 07:10p  06:44a |      Rise 05:00a   28%|
|Thu 12| 07:47a  06:07p  10:19 | 07:11p  06:42a |      Rise 05:49a   19%|
|Fri 13| 07:45a  06:08p  10:22 | 07:13p  06:41a |      Rise 06:30a   12%|
|Sat 14| 07:44a  06:10p  10:25 | 07:14p  06:40a |      Rise 07:02a    7%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 15| 07:43a  06:11p  10:28 | 07:15p  06:38a |      Rise 07:29a    2%|
|Mon 16| 07:41a  06:12p  10:31 | 07:16p  06:37a |      Rise 07:51a    0%|
|Tue 17| 07:39a  06:14p  10:34 | 07:18p  06:36a |New   Set  06:39p    0%|
|Wed 18| 07:38a  06:15p  10:37 | 07:19p  06:34a |      Set  07:52p    3%|
|Thu 19| 07:36a  06:17p  10:40 | 07:20p  06:33a |      Set  09:05p    7%|
|Fri 20| 07:35a  06:18p  10:43 | 07:22p  06:31a |      Set  10:21p   14%|
|Sat 21| 07:33a  06:19p  10:46 | 07:23p  06:30a |      Set  11:38p   23%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 22| 07:31a  06:21p  10:49 | 07:24p  06:28a |      Set  12:58a   33%|
|Mon 23| 07:30a  06:22p  10:52 | 07:26p  06:26a |      Set  02:18a   44%|
|Tue 24| 07:28a  06:23p  10:55 | 07:27p  06:25a |F Qtr Set  03:33a   56%|
|Wed 25| 07:27a  06:25p  10:58 | 07:28p  06:23a |      Set  04:37a   67%|
|Thu 26| 07:25a  06:26p  11:01 | 07:29p  06:22a |      Set  05:27a   77%|
|Fri 27| 07:23a  06:28p  11:04 | 07:31p  06:20a |      Set  06:06a   86%|
|Sat 28| 07:21a  06:29p  11:07 | 07:32p  06:18a |      Set  06:35a   93%|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
* Nautical Twilight
** Moonrise or moonset, whichever occurs between sunset and sunrise

Created using my LookingUp for MS-DOS app.

Categories: Ephemeris Program, Month preview, Observing Tags: