Is “Planet Parade” the latest buzz word in skywatching? Supermoons, shooting stars “lighting up the night sky” and “Ring of Fire” eclipses have been popular in recent years. Now, move on to the possibility of planetary alignment, which is clearly more than enough to attract a mainstream audience.
It was difficult to move away from the so-called “planet parade” in early 2025, when Mars, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, Vesper And saturn were together in the night sky – although only four of them were visible.
‘Planet Parade’ of February 2026
Saturday, February 28, is the date being promoted to see the six planets in the evening sky. “On February 28, we’ll see not one, not two, but six planets in the evening sky,” writes the space agency’s “Alyssa Lee.”look at the sky” Blog. “Mercury, Venus, Neptunesaturn, uranusAnd Jupiter Will be visible soon after sunset.”
Unfortunately, “see” is doing a lot of work here.
To have any chance, you’ll need:
- An unobstructed view to the west
- clear sky
- About half an hour after sunset on Saturday, February 28
- Binoculars, a telescope – and most likely, a healthy dose of imagination.
Dissection of ‘Planet Parade’
The main issue with seeing all six planets is that four of them are already close. Sun And will be visible only for a short time – if at all – in the bright twilight. At twilight Venus and Mercury will be closest to the horizon, followed by Saturn and Neptune, with Uranus and Jupiter very high in the sky. In practice, seeing more than three planets will probably be a challenge.
Venus and Mercury
The inner planets, shining at magnitude -3.8 and 0.3 respectively, will probably require a telescope. It will be really easy to see Mercury at the beginning of the month; It is highest in the sky after sunset on February 19–20. However, at that time, Venus will be lower in the sky, so it will be harder to see – which is why February 28 offers some balance.
saturn and neptune
Now slowly approaching the Sun’s brightness (its solar conjunction is on March 25), Saturn is well past its peak and is now shining magnitude 1. It is visible to the naked eye; However, unlike nearby Neptune, which will require a small telescope to view at magnitude 8.
uranus
Uranus will hang just below, between the cluster of four planets in the southwest and Jupiter in the south. pleiades (M45) Cluster opened on 28 February. Shining at magnitude 5.7, it should be possible to pick it out in a pair of stargazing telescopes.
Jupiter
Now after reaching opposition on January 10, it has shown its best Solar systemThe giant planet now shines at magnitude -2.3, which is about four times brighter than the intrinsic brightness of Venus. However, Jupiter will be by far the easiest planet to see.
Moon and M44
Although it will likely be overlooked by most observers of the “planet parade,” the 92%-illuminated waxing gibbous moon will be high in the eastern sky, below Jupiter. Those with binoculars can see the Beehive Cluster (M44), one of the brightest star clusters, just below it.
Watch the production of ‘Planet Parade’
Instead of limiting yourself to one night, Saturday, February 28 – which is both limited and, for slow-moving planets, clearly meaningless – observe planets Throughout February:
- Sunday, February 8: Venus will be visible from the evening sky for the first time in a long time – although it will be challenging to find in the west just after sunset.
- Thursday, February 19: Look for a 7% illuminated crescent moon in the west-southwest near Saturn, just above Mercury at greatest eastern extension from the Sun (about 10 degrees above the horizon 45 minutes after sunset from mid-northern latitudes). Shani as bonus and Moon There will be a difference of about four degrees.
- Friday, February 20: Mercury will be at its highest in the post-sunset sky in its current view, with Saturn and a 14%-illuminated waxing crescent moon above.
- Thursday, February 26: Jupiter and the 77%-waxing gibbous moon will be about four degrees apart.
‘Planet Parade’ everyone missed
A rare triple superconjunction of Venus, Mars and Mercury was observed in mid-January 2026 – but no one saw it. That’s because it not only happened on the opposite side of the solar system, but also happened so close to the Sun, only solar observatories were able to discern the three planets in the brightness of our star.
Venus, Mars and Mercury were at best solar conjunction (when a planet passes the far side of the Sun). Earth) on January 6, January 9 and January 21 respectively. Images came from the coronagraph on ESA-NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) and GOES-19 weather satellites – the latter also features Amavasya.
planets in 2026
Although this “planet parade” will soon fade away, the prospects for planet-watchers in 2026 are excellent. Mars is transiting from the evening to the morning sky and will become visible again before sunrise in April. More impressively, Venus is rising in the sky after sunset and will establish itself as a super-bright planet by the end of March.evening starShining at magnitude -3.8 – the third-brightest object after the Sun and Moon, and much brighter than Jupiter. Venus will be highest in the sky in August and brightest in late September, although arguably the planetary highlight of 2026 comes on June 9 when Venus and Jupiter will be in close conjunction in the evening sky, with Mercury just below.
