Here are the dates and times for upcoming astronomical events, including the moon phases, equinoxes and solstices, eclipses, planetary oppositions and conjunctions, conjunctions of the moon with planets and bright stars, meteor showers, and more.
January 14 morning: The moon near Antares
Tonight, on the early morning of January 14, the waning crescent moon will appear near Antares, the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion.
January 18: New moon
The moment of the new moon will fall on January 18, 2026, at 19:52 UTC (2:52 p.m. EST). It rises and sets with the sun. Nights around the new moon are best for stargazing because the sky is moon-free.
January 21: Mercury reaches superior solar conjunction
Mercury will reach superior solar conjunction—when it lies behind the sun in its orbit—on January 21, 2026, at 16:00 UTC (11 a.m. EST). Around that time, Mercury will not be visible in the sky, as it will appear very close to the sun.
January 22 evening: The moon near Saturn
On the early evening of January 22, the waxing crescent moon will appear near the golden Saturn, forming a conjunction of the moon and Saturn. They will set a few hours before midnight.
January 22: Venus reaches aphelion
Venus will reach aphelion—the farthest point from the sun in its elliptical orbit—on January 22, 2026, at 20:00 UTC (3:00 p.m. EST), when it will be approximately 108.9 million km away from the sun. The average distance between the sun and Venus is about 108.2 million km.
January 25: Lunar X and Lunar V
The Lunar X and Lunar V—the transient optical features that appear along the terminator of a first quarter moon—will be visible from 16:00 UTC to 19:00 UTC on January 25, 2026. You can see them through a pair of binoculars or a telescope.
Read more: Lunar X and V 2026: When will they be visible next?
January 26: First quarter moon
The moment of the first quarter moon will fall on January 26, 2026, at 04:47 UTC (11:47 p.m. EST on January 25). It rises around noon and sets around midnight local time. Look for it around sunset, when it appears high in the sky.
January 27 evening: The moon near the Pleiades
On the early evening of January 27, the waxing gibbous moon will appear near the Pleiades star cluster, forming a close conjunction. You can see a few bright stars of the cluster with the naked eye. They will remain visible until after midnight.
January 29: The moon reaches perigee
The moon will reach perigee—the closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit—on January 29, 2026, at 21:53 UTC (4:53 p.m. EST), when it will be 365,878 km away from Earth.
Read more: Lunar perigee 2026: When is the next one?
January 30 evening: The moon near Jupiter
On the evening of January 30, the waxing gibbous moon will appear near the bright Jupiter, forming a conjunction of the moon and Jupiter. Jupiter will be located in the constellation Gemini the twins and its two brightest stars—Castor and Pollux—will also be visible nearby. They will set before sunrise the next morning.
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