November 2026 will bring a series of notable skywatching opportunities, including three meteor showers, a close apparent pairing of Mars and Jupiter, the start of a run of three supermoons and a major distance milestone for NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft. NASA also plans to mark Voyager 1’s achievement on November 17.
Skywatching highlights for November 2026
- Around November 5: The Southern Taurid meteor shower reaches its maximum, with the possibility of an exceptionally bright fireball.
- Around November 12: The Northern Taurids peak, producing about five meteors per hour under ideal viewing conditions.
- November 15 and 16: Mars and Jupiter appear just 1.2 degrees apart in the southeastern sky before sunrise.
- November 17: NASA celebrates Voyager 1’s historic distance milestone with Shine Bright for Voyager’s solar launch.
- November 17 and 18: The Leonid meteor shower offers its best viewing before dawn, after the Moon sets. Under ideal conditions, about 15 meteors per hour may be visible.
- November 24: A full supermoon lights up the evening sky, beginning a sequence of three consecutive supermoons.
Three meteor showers could light up the sky
November offers several opportunities to see meteors flash across the night sky. The first comes from two related showers—the Southern Taurids and Northern Taurids—which reach peak activity about a week apart.
The Southern Taurids peak around November 5, while the Northern Taurids reach their maximum around November 12. Both showers are named for the constellation Taurus, the region of the sky from which the meteors appear to originate when viewed from Earth.
Neither shower produces a large number of meteors. Even under excellent conditions, each typically delivers about five meteors per hour. However, the Taurids are known for occasionally producing spectacular fireballs—extremely bright meteors that can make an otherwise quiet night of skywatching memorable.
The Leonids provide another opportunity later in the month. The best viewing is expected during the early morning hours of November 17 and 18, particularly after the Moon has dropped below the horizon. Under ideal conditions, observers could see about 15 meteors per hour, although the actual rate is generally lower.
For the best chance of spotting meteors, move away from bright city lights. Give your eyes about 30 minutes to adjust to the darkness, then watch a broad area of the sky rather than focusing on a small section.
Mars and Jupiter will appear almost side by side
Meteor showers are not the only reason to go outside before dawn. On November 15 and 16, Mars and Jupiter will form an eye-catching pairing in the southeastern sky.
The planets will appear only about 1.2 degrees apart—slightly more than the apparent width of two full moons placed next to each other.
Jupiter will be the brighter and easier planet to identify. Mars will appear nearby with its characteristic reddish color.
No telescope or binoculars are needed to see the conjunction. Under suitable viewing conditions, both planets should be visible to the naked eye.
Although Mars and Jupiter will appear close together from Earth, they remain separated by an enormous distance in space. Their apparent proximity is simply the result of their positions along our line of sight.
Watching the planets over several consecutive mornings will reveal another feature of their motion: They will appear to draw closer together before changing position and beginning to move apart again.
Voyager 1 reaches an extraordinary deep-space milestone
While November’s events unfold in Earth’s sky, something remarkable is happening far beyond the planet. NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft has reached a historic distance of one light-day from Earth, making it the first human-made object to travel that far from Earth.
A light-day is the distance light travels through space in 24 hours. Because radio signals travel at the speed of light, a message sent from Earth would take a full day to reach Voyager 1 at this distance.
If the spacecraft responded immediately, the return signal would take another 24 hours to arrive. The fastest possible round trip would therefore take approximately 48 hours.
The milestone illustrates how far Voyager 1 has traveled since leaving Earth and how communication becomes increasingly difficult as spacecraft explore distant regions of space.
Voyager 1 is traveling generally in the direction of the constellation Ophiuchus, although it is far beyond anything visible to the naked eye.
NASA is commemorating the achievement with Shine Bright for Voyager’s daylight launch on November 17, inviting people to celebrate the spacecraft’s extraordinary contribution to space exploration.
November’s supermoon begins a three-month celestial sequence
The month’s final major skywatching event arrives on November 24, when a full supermoon rises in the evening sky.
A supermoon occurs when a full Moon coincides with a point in the Moon’s orbit at which it is relatively close to Earth. Because the Moon follows a slightly elliptical orbit rather than a perfect circle, its distance from Earth changes over time.
When a full Moon occurs near the closer part of its orbit, it can appear somewhat larger and brighter than an average full Moon. The difference is real, but it is often subtle and may not be immediately noticeable to a casual observer.
The November event is especially notable because it begins a sequence of three consecutive supermoons. Another will follow in December, with the third expected in January.
For a memorable view, NASA recommends looking toward the eastern horizon around sunset on November 24, when the full Moon will rise.
The Moon may look unusually large when it first appears near the horizon, but much of that impression comes from a visual phenomenon known as the Moon illusion.
The effect makes the Moon appear larger near the horizon than when it is overhead, even though its actual apparent size is nearly unchanged. The illusion can occur during any full Moon, not only a supermoon.
With three meteor showers, a close planetary pairing, a historic Voyager 1 milestone and the beginning of a supermoon sequence, November will offer plenty of reasons to look up at the night sky.
Source: www.sciencedaily.com