A bright full moon, dazzling meteor shows and a remarkable total eclipse will give stargazers plenty of reasons to gaze skyward in 2026.
The new year begins with a full wolf moon on Saturday, the first of three supermoons this year. Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, will appear south of the silvery orb, according to EarthSky.
The brightness of the supermoon, which appears brighter and fuller than a regular full moon due to its proximity to Earth, can prevent the visibility of the Quadrantid meteor shower.
The Quadrantids are expected to peak from 4 to 7 pm ET on Saturday – just when the full moon is dominating the night sky.
But there are many more meteor showers and celestial events to look forward to in 2026, according to Robert Lunsford, fire report coordinator for the American Meteor Society.
Supermoons and full moons
A supermoon rises behind the Benedictine Abbey in November in Kraków, Poland. – Omar Marques/Anadolu/Getty Images
Most years see 12 full moons with one occurring each month. But in 2026, there will be 13, with two in May.
The second full moon in a month is known as a blue moon — like the phrase “once in a blue moon”.
Typically, a full moon occurs every 29 days, while most months in our calendar last 30 or 31 days, so months and moon phases don’t exactly align — resulting in a blue moon about every two and a half years.
After the January supermoon, the next two supermoons will be in November and December. On average, the moon is about 238,900 miles (384,472 kilometers) from Earth. But December’s supermoon will be the closest of the year at 221,667 miles (356,740 kilometers) away, according to EarthSky.
Here are the rest of the full moons in 2026, according to the Farmers’ Almanac:
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September 26: Harvest Moon
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October 26: Hunter’s Moon
Meteor showers
The Perseids rise above the Temple of Zeus in Aizanoi, an ancient city in Turkey, in August. – Kemal Aslan/AFP/Getty Images
After the Quadrantids peak in early January, sky watchers will have to wait a bit until the Lyrid meteor shower in April.
Here are the dates for the rest of the meteor shower that will peak in 2026, according to the American Meteor Society.
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South Delta Aquariids: July 30-31
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Alpha Capricornids: July 30-31
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Southern Taurids: November 4-5
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Northern Taurids: November 11-12
“The Perseids and the Geminids will be the best showers of the year,” Lunsford said. “The Perseids are predicted to peak without lunar interference.”
The Geminids produced a powerful shower in 2025 with hourly meteor rates as high as 135, Lunsford noted.
“There’s no reason why we can’t expect similar rates in 2026 once the moon goes down.”
Solar eclipse
The Annular Solar Eclipse appeals AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Sky watchers can look forward to the dramatic sightings of two solar eclipses and two lunar eclipses this year, according to NASA.
An annular solar eclipse will occur on February 17th over Antarctica. The phenomenon happens every year when the moon is near or at the furthest point in its orbit from Earth as it passes between Earth and the sun. As a result, the moon cannot completely block the sun as it does during a total solar eclipse, and instead the fiery light of the sun surrounds the shadow of the moon, creating a ring of fire effect. Meanwhile, a partial solar eclipse in the shape of a crescent moon will be visible in Antarctica, Africa and South America.
Be sure to wear proper eclipse glasses to view the solar eclipse safely as sunlight can damage the eyes.
A total solar eclipse will be visible in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia and part of Portugal on August 12. A partial eclipse will occur for viewers in Europe, Africa and North America.
Lunar Eclipse
A total lunar eclipse will be visible in the night sky for those in Asia, Australia, the Pacific Islands and the Americas on March 3.
A lunar eclipse can only occur during a full moon when the sun, Earth and moon align and the moon passes into the Earth’s shadow. When this happens, the Earth casts two shadows on the moon. The partial outer shadow is called the penumbra; the full, dark shadow is the umbra.
When the full moon moves into Earth’s shadow, it darkens, but does not disappear. Instead, sunlight passing through Earth’s atmosphere lights up the moon dramatically, turning it red — which is why the event is often called a “blood moon.”
People watch a blood moon during a total lunar eclipse in Køge, Denmark, in September. – Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix Denmark/Reuters
This phenomenon occurs because blue light undergoes stronger atmospheric scattering than red light, and as a result, red is the most dominant color as sunlight passes through our atmosphere and illuminates the moon. Depending on the weather conditions in your area, the moon may appear rust or brick-red.
A partial lunar eclipse will be visible to those in the Americas, Europe, Africa and West Asia between August 27 and 28.
Check the Time and Date website to see the exact time and locations for these eclipses.
Planet parades and apparitions
A crescent moon and bright Venus can be seen over southern Alberta in April. – Alan Dyer/VWPics/Universal Images Group/Getty Images
February will host a parade of six planets visible in the night sky.
Saturn will be close to the horizon, while Venus and Mercury will be seen rising above the setting sun, according to EarthSky. Neptune will also appear near Saturn, but the distant ice giant will only be visible through a telescope or binoculars.
Meanwhile, Uranus will be visible near the moon on February 23 — again, with the help of binoculars or a telescope. Luminous Jupiter will also be visible to those looking east in the early evening. The moon and Jupiter will be close together on February 26th.
On May 19 after sunset, the crescent moon will shine between Jupiter and Venus. Then, during the first week of June, Jupiter and Venus will appear side by side due to the positions of their orbits even though the planets are not close neighbors in space. In the early evening of June 8 and 9, Venus and Jupiter appear to share spots in the night sky, creating the optical illusion of a double planet, according to EarthSky.
A little over a week later, Venus will appear above the waxing crescent moon, and below it, Jupiter and Mercury will be visible.
Another celestial optical illusion that will delight sky watchers is the act of disappearing Jupiter in the fall. In the early morning hours of October 6, the crescent moon and Jupiter will appear so close together that for North American viewers east of St. Louis, the moon will appear to temporarily hide Jupiter for about an hour before reappearing on the other side.
In the pre-dawn hours of November 16, the red glow of Mars will appear close to Jupiter in the eastern sky. And on the morning of December 4, the crescent moon will join powerful Venus, while Jupiter and Mars will form another scintillating duo.
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