| Image |
Date |
Event |
Description |
| January |
 | 04 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 04 | Quadrantids | 40 meteors per hour; produced by dust grains left behind by an extinct comet known as 2003 EH1, which was discovered in 2003. from January 1-5. It peaks this year on the night of the 3rd and morning of the 4th |
 | 13 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
 | 20 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 26 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| February |
| 03 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 06 | Jupiter at Opposition | The giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. |
| 11 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 18 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 22 | Conjunction of Venus and Mars | Conjunctions are rare events where two or more objects will appear extremely close together in the night sky. The two bright planets will be visible within only half a degree of each other in the evening sky. Look to the west just after sunset. |
| 25 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| March |
| 05 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 13 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 20 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 20 | Total Solar Eclipse | A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon completely blocks the Sun, revealing the Sun's beautiful outer atmosphere known as the corona. The path of totality will begin in the central Atlantic Ocean and move north across Greenland and into northern Siberia. |
 | 20 | March Equinox | The March equinox occurs at 22:45 UTC. The Sun will shine directly on the equator and there will be nearly equal amounts of day and night throughout the world. This is also the first day of spring (vernal equinox) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of fall (autumnal equinox) in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| 27 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| April |
| 04 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
 | 04 | Total Lunar Eclipse | A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes completely through the Earth's dark shadow, or umbra. During this type of eclipse, the Moon will gradually get darker and then take on a rusty or blood red color. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of North America, South America, eastern Asia, and Australia. |
| 11 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 18 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 23 | Lyrids | The Lyrids is an average shower, usually producing about 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by dust particles left behind by comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, which was discovered in 1861. The shower runs annually from April 16-25. It peaks this year on the night of the night of the 22nd and morning of the 23rd. These meteors can sometimes produce bright dust trails that last for several seconds. The first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight, leaving fairly dark skies for the what could be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Lyra, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 25 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| May |
| 03 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 06 | Eta Aquarids | The Eta Aquarids is an above average shower, capable of producing up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak. Most of the activity is seen in the Southern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, the rate can reach about 30 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust particles left behind by comet Halley, which has known and observed since ancient times. The shower runs annually from April 19 to May 28. It peaks this year on the night of May 5 and the morning of the May 6. The nearly full moon will be a big problem this year blocking out all but the brightest meteors. If you are patient, you should still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 11 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 18 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 23 | Saturn at Opposition | The ringed planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Saturn and its moons. A medium-sized or larger telescope will allow you to see Saturn's rings and a few of its brightest moons. |
| 25 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| June |
| 02 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 09 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 16 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 21 | June Solstice | The June solstice occurs at 16:38 UTC. The North Pole of the earth will be tilted toward the Sun, which will have reached its northernmost position in the sky and will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer at 23.44 degrees north latitude. This is the first day of summer (summer solstice) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of winter (winter solstice) in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| 24 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| July |
| 01 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 08 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
 | 14 | New Horizons at Pluto | NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at Pluto after a nine and a half year journey. Launched on January 19, 2006, this will be the first spacecraft to visit Pluto. New Horizons will give us our first close-up views of the dwarf planet and its moons. After passing Pluto, the spacecraft will continue on to the Kuiper belt to examine some of the other icy bodies at the edge of the Solar System. |
| 15 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 24 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 29 | Delta Aquarids | The Delta Aquarids is an average shower that can produce up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by debris left behind by comets Marsden and Kracht. The shower runs annually from July 12 to August 23. It peaks this year on the night of July 28 and morning of July 29. The nearly full moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. But if you are patient, you should still be able to catch a quite few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 31 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| August |
| 06 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 13 | Perseids | The Perseids is one of the best meteor showers to observe, producing up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by comet Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1862. The Perseids are famous for producing a large number of bright meteors. The shower runs annually from July 17 to August 24. It peaks this year on the night of August 12 and the morning of August 13. The thin crescent moon will be no match for the bright Perseids this year so be prepared for a great show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Perseus, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 14 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 22 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 29 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| September |
| 01 | Neptune at Opposition | The blue giant planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Neptune. Due to its extreme distance from Earth, it will only appear as a tiny blue dot in all but the most powerful telescopes. |
| 05 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 13 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 13 | Partial Solar Eclipse | A partial solar eclipse occurs when the Moon covers only a part of the Sun, sometimes resembling a bite taken out of a cookie. A partial solar eclipse can only be safely observed with a special solar filter or by looking at the Sun's reflection. The partial eclipse will only be visible in southern Africa, Madagascar, and Antarctica. |
| 21 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 23 | September Equinox | The September equinox occurs at 08:21 UTC. The Sun will shine directly on the equator and there will be nearly equal amounts of day and night throughout the world. This is also the first day of fall (autumnal equinox) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of spring (vernal equinox) in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| 27 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 28 | Total Lunar Eclipse | A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes completely through the Earth's dark shadow, or umbra. During this type of eclipse, the Moon will gradually get darker and then take on a rusty or blood red color. The eclipse will be visible throughout most of North and South America, Europe, Africa, and western Asia. |
| October |
| 04 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 09 | Draconids | The Draconids is a minor meteor shower producing only about 10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was first discovered in 1900. The shower runs annually from October 6-10 and peaks this year on the the night of the 8th and morning of the 9th. The second quarter moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. If you are patient, you may be able to spot a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 11 | Uranus at Opposition | The blue-green planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view Uranus. Due to its distance, it will only appear as a tiny blue-green dot in all but the most powerful telescopes. |
| 12 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 20 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 22 | Orionids | The Orionids is an average shower producing up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Halley, which has been known and observed since ancient times. The shower runs annually from October 2 to November 7. It peaks this year on the night of October 21 and the morning of October 22. The first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight leaving fairly dark skies for what should be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Orion, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 26 | Conjunction of Venus and Jupiter | Conjunctions are rare events where two or more objects will appear extremely close together in the night sky. The two bright planets will be visible within 1 degree of each other in the early morning sky. Look to the east just before sunrise. |
| 27 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| 28 | Conjunction of Venus, Mars, and Jupiter | Conjunctions are rare events where two or more objects will appear extremely close together in the night sky. The three planets will form a tight 1-degree triangle in the early morning sky. Look to the east just before sunrise. |
| November |
| 03 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 06 | Taurids | The Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is unusual in that it consists of two separate streams. The first is produced by dust grains left behind by Asteroid 2004 TG10. The second stream is produced by debris left behind by Comet 2P Encke. The shower runs annually from September 7 to December 10. It peaks this year on the the night of November 5. The second quarter moon will block out all but the brightest meteors this year. If you are patient, you may still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Taurus, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 11 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 18 | Leonids | The Leonids is an average shower, producing an average of up to 15 meteors per hour at its peak. This shower is unique in that it has a cyclonic peak about every 33 years where hundreds of meteors per hour can be seen. That last of these occurred in 2001. The Leonids is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1865. The shower runs annually from November 6-30. It peaks this year on the night of the 17th and morning of the 18th. The first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight leaving fairly dark skies for what could be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Leo, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 19 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 25 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
| December |
| 03 | Last Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 07 | Conjunction of the Moon and Venus | Conjunctions are rare events where two or more objects will appear extremely close together in the night sky. The crescent moon will come with 2 degrees of bright planet Venus in the early morning sky. Look to the east just before sunrise. |
| 11 | New Moon | Moon Phase |
| 14 | Geminids | The Geminids is the king of the meteor showers. It is considered by many to be the best shower in the heavens, producing up to 120 multicolored meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by debris left behind by an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon, which was discovered in 1982. The shower runs annually from December 7-17. It peaks this year on the night of the 13th and morning of the 14th. The crescent moon will set early in the evening leaving dark skies for what should be an excellent show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Gemini, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 18 | First Quarter | Moon Phase |
| 22 | December Solstice | The December solstice occurs at 04:48 UTC. The South Pole of the earth will be tilted toward the Sun, which will have reached its southernmost position in the sky and will be directly over the Tropic of Capricorn at 23.44 degrees south latitude. This is the first day of winter (winter solstice) in the Northern Hemisphere and the first day of summer (summer solstice) in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| 23 | Ursids | The Ursids is a minor meteor shower producing about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tuttle, which was first discovered in 1790. The shower runs annually from December 17-25. It peaks this year on the the night of the 22nd. This year the nearly full moon will be bright enough to hide all but the brightest meteors. If you are patient, you might still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor, but can appear anywhere in the sky. |
| 25 | Full Moon | Moon Phase |
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