Sky Events
April 2026
April 2: Full Moon
April 3: Mercury greatest western elongation
April 7: Moon at apogee
April 10: Last Quarter Moon
April 17: New Moon
April 19: Moon at perigee, Conjunction of Moon and Venus with separation of 4°45′
April 22: Conjunction of Moon and Jupiter with separation of 3°33′
April 23: First Quarter Moon
Planets in April
Mercury: Poorly placed morning planet
Venus: Becoming much more prominent in the evening sky throughout the month
Mars: Not visible this month
Jupiter: Good viewing in the western sky after sunset
Saturn: Not visible this month
May 1: Full Moon
May 6: η-Aquariid meteor shower reaches peak activity of up to 40 meteors per hour
May 9: Third Quarter Moon
May 12: The globular cluster M5 in Serpens is well-placed for observation
May 13: Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn, with the Moon passing 5°41′ to the north of Saturn
May 18: Conjunction of the Moon and Venus, with an angular separation of 2°56′
May 20: Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter, with an angular separation of 3°05′
May 23: First Quarter Moon
May 31: Blue (Full) Moon
Planets in May
Mercury: morning planet, too low to be seen properly
Venus: morning planet, lowering so hard to see before sunrise
Mars: Evening planet, best at start of May
Jupiter: Evening planet in Taurus, compromised by twilight mid-month onwards.
Saturn: Poorly placed morning planet forming a compact triangle with Venus and Neptune early in May.