Overview
- The February full moon reaches maximum illumination at 5:09 p.m. Eastern, appearing full tonight and on adjacent evenings as it rises in the east after sunset.
- Because the full phase coincides with apogee, NASA notes this micromoon will look slightly smaller and dimmer than an average full moon.
- A near-full moon passed close to Jupiter over the Jan. 30–31 weekend, and the planet remains an easy evening target nearby in the winter sky.
- An annular “ring of fire” solar eclipse occurs on Feb. 17, primarily visible from Antarctica and remote parts of southern Africa and South America, with a new moon providing dark skies that night elsewhere.
- A six‑planet alignment on Feb. 28 will string Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune across the sky, with Venus, Jupiter and Saturn visible to the naked eye and Uranus and Neptune requiring binoculars or a telescope.