February 2026 Calendar
At any moment of the day, countless awe-inspiring celestial events are unfolding in the sky. With a universe of options, it can be hard to pin down what to observe. The purpose of this calendar is to provide a peek into what’s happening in the sky and in the world of astronomy in general and provide a quick list of highlights that can jump start your own explorations.
February 1 – Full Moon Buzzes The Beehive Cluster
If you’re looking for a great binocular target to kick off the month, be sure to turn your oculars to the sky on the evening of February 1 when the stunning Full Moon – also known as the Snow Moon — visually pairs up with the beautiful Beehive Cluster. During this close encounter, the pair will be positioned just over 1 degree apart in the Cancer constellation. The Beehive Cluster, which is also known as M44, lies about 560 light years away and can be observed with the naked eye. The cluster appears as a cloudy mass at first glance. But when you turn a pair of large aperture binoculars or a small rich field telescope on it, its stellar inhabitants blaze to life. Covering more than 1.5 degrees of sky, the Beehive Cluster is home to at least 1,000 stars, with a large portion of those being red dwarfs and about 30 percent of a type similar to our Sun. It also includes some impressive blue-white beauties and a sprinkling of orange giants. Identified as a nebulous mass by the 2nd Century astronomer Ptolemy, M44 has a rich history that includes being one of the first objects studied through a telescope by famed astronomer Galileo, who realized it was actually a star cluster. It also has a strong foundation in the lore of ancient cultures. Also known as Praesepe, which means “manger” in Latin, the Greeks and Romans characterized the cluster as a manger that feeds two nearby stars, Asellus Australis and Asellus Borealis, which were seen to represent two famous donkeys that were key in a battle with the Titans. If you miss this opportunity to catch this particular pairing, check back in Cancer on February 28 when the two have another meet-up.
February 2 – Moon Occults Regulus
Millions of observers in a path stretching from parts of North America to parts of Africa will witness the nearly full Moon occult Regulus beginning around 7:46 p.m. CST. During an occultation, one celestial object visually passes in front of another object – briefly blocking our view. Regulus, which is also known as “Little King,” is the brightest star in the Leo constellation. Boasting an apparent visual magnitude of 1.35, this blue-white beauty anchors the sickle-shaped asterism that defines the head of the lion and is said to represent the beast’s heart. Although it appears as a single point of light to the unaided eye, Regulus is actually a multiple star system that can be at least partially resolved with large aperture binoculars. Those outside the occultation zone can still witness a conjunction between the pair.
February 10-11 – Moon and Antares
The waning crescent Moon and the red supergiant Antares will be making a close pass in the early morning hours of February 10 and 11. Even though they do not really share celestial real estate, it will seem like they do as they move closer together in the southeast sky until they are visually separated by mere degrees. Antares, which means “Rival of Mars” in Greek, is often mistaken for Mars due to its similar reddish hue. Generally identified as the 16th brightest star in the sky, Antares is an irregular variable with a red-orange glow that makes it truly pop. Closer observations with a moderate telescope could reveal its blue companion star, which can be highly challenging to discern.
February 19 – Mercury at Greatest Eastern Elongation
Although you will have to be quick to catch it, Mercury will be in a prime position for early evening viewing on February 19. Because it is always so close to the Sun, Mercury is usually lost in its glare. But on this day the inner planet will set just over an hour after the Sun as it reaches its greatest eastern elongation or furthest point to the east of the Sun. A clear western horizon is essential for viewing Mercury. While Mercury will be visible as a bright point of light to the naked eye, a moderate-sized telescope will be useful for those wanting a deeper view. As an added bonus, you might catch Venus and Saturn lurking in the visual neighborhood of our solar system’s innermost planet at twilight.
February 23 – Close Approach of Moon and M45
The waxing gibbous Moon and the storied Pleiades star cluster with its brilliant blue stars will appear just over 1 degree apart on the evening of February 23 – meaning it’s a great time to see the duo in a pair of binoculars. Also know by the names Messier 45 or the more poetic Seven Sisters, the Pleiades open star cluster has a rich lore that crosses cultures and goes back thousands of years. It is relatively young, having formed within the last 100 million years, and lies relatively close to Earth at about 440 light years away. Found in the Taurus constellation, it consists of more than 1,000 confirmed stars, although an average of only six are visible to the naked eye. A dark sky free of light pollution can help a dedicated observer see around a dozen Pleiades stars, but a good pair of binoculars or a low-power telescope can quickly reveal the more elusive members of this legendary cluster.
February 27 – Asteroid 7 Iris at Opposition
As the month draws to a close, telescopes with an aperture of at least 4 inches may catch Asteroid 7 Iris as it reaches opposition, which means it is essentially at a position directly opposite of the Sun when viewed from Earth. At the same time, it also will be at its closest approach to Earth. The combination of these factors means the asteroid will be in a prime viewing position within the Sextans constellation as it reaches a peak brightness of magnitude 8.9. Discovered in 1847, Asteroid 7 Iris is a main-belt asteroid with a diameter of about 200 kilometers, which is about the size of Maryland.
February 28 – Planetary Parade
Planetary enthusiasts will want to mark February 28 on their calendar because it brings the chance to see Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune all at once in the night sky. To catch this planetary parade, you will need to have your observing gear set up and turned to the sky shortly after sunset because Mercury, Venus, Saturn and Neptune will all be lurking near the horizon so you will have to act fast to catch them. Uranus and Jupiter will be up much longer. Mercury, Venus, Saturn and Jupiter are all bright enough to spot easily with the unaided eye. However, Neptune and Uranus are exponentially easier to catch with the assistance of binoculars or a telescope. During the event, Venus will be in the Aquarius constellation; Mercury, Saturn and Neptune will be in Pisces; Uranus will be in Taurus; and Jupiter, which will be in the night sky for the longest period on February 28, will be in Gemini.
Astrophotographer Johnny Bellisario captured this image of the Flaming Star Nebula and the Tadpole Nebula with the aid of an Explore Scientific ED80 Triplet Refractor.
Constellation spotlight: Auriga
This month is an ideal time to catch the Auriga constellation riding across the northern hemisphere’s winter sky. Known as The Charioteer, Auriga is visible from 90° North to 40° South and plays host to the galactic anticenter, which is the point in the sky that is directly opposite the center of the Milky Way. One of its most prominent features is Capella, which is the sixth brightest star in the sky. Known as the Goat Star, Capella actually consists of two sets of binary pairs. The first is a set of large, bright yellow giants that are very close together and the second is a pair of small red dwarfs. A triangle-shaped asterism lies near the brilliant star system, and its trio of stars is often referred to as “The Kids.” Auriga also is home to Epsilon Aurigae, an eclipsing binary star system that dims for about two years every 27 years. The main component in the system is a supergiant but the nature of its companion has long been a subject of debate. Beyond its star offerings, Auriga has many deep sky treasures including the Messier 36, Messier 37 and Messier 38 open star clusters and the Flaming Star Nebula. This beautiful emission/reflection nebula is about five lightyears across and surrounds AE Aurigae - a brilliant blue star characterized as a “runaway star“ due to the fact that it is moving at a higher velocity than its neighboring stars. It is believed that AE Aurigae was ejected when two binary systems collided. Another nearby deep sky target worth checking out is the Tadpole Nebula – which spans 100 light years and contains the NGC 1893 star cluster.
WANT TO NAVIGATE THE NIGHT SKY WITH EASE?
The Tirion Double-Sided Multi-Latitude Planisphere is a comprehensive sky map for northern hemisphere stargazers located between the equator and latitude 60° north that makes it easy to identify what constellations and major celestial objects are up in your night sky based on the date and time.
This night sky guide, which features maps crafted by noted celestial cartographer Wil Tirion, uses a double-sided design to minimize the distortion that is inherent to any polar-centered projection. This design choice means observers can see truer representations of the constellations located outside the equator (noted by a green line) by simply flipping the planisphere over.
In addition to showcasing constellations, this planisphere indicates the location of notable variable stars, open clusters, nebulae and galaxies. Other features include a line representing the ecliptic, a faint blue band for the Milky Way and a magnitude scale that indicates the brightness of the stars that are shown.
This astronomy planisphere is made of durable plastic that easily wipes clean, and the rotating components are secured with sturdy brass rivets for smooth manipulation. Guidance for using your sky map is printed on the device for quick reference.