Skywatcher's Guide: February and March 2026

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• Stars and Constellations
• Solar System
• Calendar of Night Sky Events
• Deep Sky
• Frequently Asked Questions

Stars and Constellations

In February, the center of the Milky Way is well below the horizon, but there is still a good portion of our galaxy we can see streaking high across the sky. The fall sky is still prominent in the west.  The "W" of Cassiopeia is high in the northwest. In the absence of the Big Dipper (part of our spring sky) Cassiopeia can be used to locate the north star: The top (open side) of the "W" faces to the north, so in that direction look for a star about the same brightness as the main stars in Casssiopeia, and that will most likely be Polaris.  The Big Dipper is beginning to come up again, but it is likely to be hidden behind trees and mountains along the horizon.  Next, the Great Square of Pegasus is getting low in the west.  Andromeda is just above that, with Perseus even higher, nearly in the middle of the sky.  Finally, the winter sky is now getting very high in the east.  Taurus the bull with the bright star Aldebaran is very high (near Perseus) along with the Pleiades (aka the seven sisters or Subaru) star cluster.  Auriga the charioteer with the bright star Capella is very high as well, slightly more to the northeast.  Gemini the twins is just below that in the east, and Canis Minor (the little dog) with the bright star Procyon is just below.  Orion the hunter is up in the southeast, with his easily recognizable belt, and Canis Major (the big dog) is just below.

In March, the winter portion of the Milky Way continues to streak across the sky.  The fall constellations are now getting low in the west, with Pegasus now partly below the horizon.  The winter constellations are now in the middle of the sky, and some of the spring constellations are beginning to come up.  Leo the lion is just above the horizon in the east, and the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) is now up in the northeast.

Interesting Stars Visible in February and March (from 7-10 pm)

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Solar System

Mercury is visible in the evening sky for much of February.  It passes between us and the Sun in early March and then emerges in the morning sky at the end of the month.

Venus comes up in the evening sky in late February and slowly gets higher throughout March.

Mars is still lost in the glare of the Sun during February but will emerge in the morning sky in early March.

Jupiter is in Gemini, climbing from about 30° up in the east in early February to almost directly overhead by the end of March.

Saturn is in Pisces, starting off around 30° up in the west-southwest after sunset but slowly descends until it disappears in early March.  It then passes behind the Sun later in the month.

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Jupiter Great Red Spot Transits in February and March (from 7-10 pm)

Note: The GRS is visible on the disk of Jupiter for 50 minutes before and after meridian transit time.

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Calendar of Night Sky Events

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Deep Sky

The winter Milky Way is now prominent in the sky.  There are many spectacular deep sky objects we can see now.  Starting with open clusters, we first have the Pleiades (Seven Sisters, M45) nearly in the middle of the sky.  Next to that, the Hyades cluster (C41) makes up the face of Taurus the bull.  Also nearby, the constellation of Auriga contains M36, M37, and M38, which are visible with binoculars.  We also have Perseus's Double Cluster (C14) still fairly high in the northwest, and the Beehive (Praesepe, M44) up in the east.

This is not a good time of year to see globular clusters, as most of them are concentrated in the summer sky.  The brightest one we can see now is M79 below Orion in Lepus the hare, but it is nearly 8th magnitude.

For nebulae, we have the spectacular Orion Nebula (M42) now prominent in the south. This is the closest star-forming region to our solar system.  We also have some good planetary nebulae, which come from dying stars.  The Blue Snowball (C22) in Andromeda is towards the west, the Eskimo (C39) in Gemini is high in the east, and the Owl (M97) in Ursa Major is low in the northeast.

And now the galaxies:  Our neighbor the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) is now heading towards the west and is visible on dark nights with the naked eye.  Also nearby is the Triangulum Galaxy (M33), visible with binoculars.  In Ursa Major to the northeast we have Bode's Galaxy (M81) and the Cigar Galaxy (M82), close enough to be seen together in a low-power telescope.

Interesting Deep Sky Objects to Observe during February and March (from 7-10 pm)

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Cosmic Microwave Background?

You may have heard about the Cosmic Microwave Background before, but what exactly is this radiation that we find all around us?

The CMB (or at least a similar concept) was hypothesized as far back as 1896, but it was discovered in 1964 as a persistent “noise” that appeared to come equally from all directions.  The CMB has a spectrum corresponding to a blackbody at 2.7 kelvins, with variations of only around 0.0001 kelvin.  This is taken as confirmation of the Big Bang.

What we’re seeing is the plasma that filled the universe in the early period before atoms existed.  It would have appeared like a thick bright fog, but as the young universe expanded it cooled to the point where electrons could combine with protons, converting the plasma into neutral hydrogen.  This transition started roughly 300,000 years after the Big Bang at a temperature of around 3000 K (orange-yellow light), and it took around 100,000 years for the universe to become fully transparent.  The last photons emitted by the plasma have been redshifted by the continued expansion of our universe by a factor of about 1100, which is why it shows up as only 2.7 K (microwaves) to us today.

If you have any questions you'd like me to answer in the next issue of SWG, please let me know.  I'm also happy to take suggestions or comments, and also pictures if you'd like to send them.  Happy viewing!

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Date of publication: 2026