October 11, 2026: Before sunrise, Mars appears in the Beehive star cluster while closing the gap to Jupiter. View the planets and the famous stellar bundle through a binocular.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 6:59 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 6:15 p.m. CDT. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
Jupiter and Mars Before Sunrise
Jupiter and Mars are in the eastern sky before sunrise. Mars appears to be in the Beehive star cluster.
Step outside an hour before sunrise. Bright Jupiter is less than halfway up in the east-southeast. It outshines all the stars in the sky this morning, even Sirius, about 30° above the southern horizon. The Jovian Giant rambles slowly eastward in front of Leo, nearly 9° to Regulus’ upper right, the Lion’s brightest star.
Mars is nearly 14° to Jupiter’s upper right. Marching eastward in front of Cancer, the Red Planet is slowly overtaking Jupiter. Their conjunction occurs November 16.
Mars in the Beehive
This morning, Mars appears to be in the Beehive star cluster. Find the view through a binocular. The planet, nearly 148 million miles away, is seen against the stellar bundle 590 light years distant.
The Beehive can be seen from a rural area without optical assistance. It appears as a cloud larger than the moon. In a binocular, a few dozen blue-white stars are visible.
Through the binocular, locate Asellus Borealis and Asellus Australis, two donkeys that are eating from a manger or Praesepe, another name for the star cluster. Also find Eta Cancri (η Cnc) and Theta Cancri (θ Cnc). Together, the four stars outline the Crab’s body with the star cluster nearly in the middle.
During the next several mornings, watch Mars move away from the Beehive and close the gap to Jupiter before their November 16 conjunction. The planet stays in the same binocular field with the cluster for several mornings.
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