October 28, 2026: Find the bright Hunter’s Moon near the Pleiades before sunrise, watch Mars approach Jupiter and Regulus, and observe Saturn through a telescope after sunset.
by Jeffrey L. Hunt
Chicago, Illinois: Sunrise, 7:18 a.m. CDT; Sunset, 5:50 p.m. CDT. Times are calculated by the US Naval Observatory’s MICA computer program. Check local sources for sunrise and sunset times.
Morning Moon, Taurus
Before sunrise, the bright Hunter’s Moon, 93% illuminated, is nearly 45° above the west horizon. After the occultation of stars in the Pleiades after sunset yesterday, the star cluster is 5.3° to the lunar orb’s lower right. In this moonlight, a binocular is likely needed to see the stellar heap.
Brighter Aldebaran, Taurus’ brightest star, is over 11° to the moon’s left, while the Bull’s horns, Elnath and Zeta Tauri, are nearly 20° to the upper left.
Jupiter, Mars, Regulus
Farther eastward, bright Jupiter is nearly 55° above the southeast horizon. It slowly rambles eastward in front of Leo, 6.3° to Regulus’ upper right, the Lion’s brightest star. Jupiter is brighter than all the stars in the sky this morning. It retains this ranking until Venus enters the east-southeastern sky, rising this morning 25 minutes before sunrise.
Mars, marching eastward in front of Cancer, is 7.1° to Jupiter’s upper right. Notice that Mars, Jupiter, and Regulus are nearly equally spaced. Mars passes Jupiter on November 16 and Regulus on November 26 for the first of three conjunctions—a triple conjunction—as Mars nears opposition on February 20.
Saturn After Sunset
After sunset, Saturn is over 20° above the east-southeast horizon. Not as bright as Venus or Jupiter, it is the brightest star in the region. From suburban settings, only a few other stars are visible nearby.
Saturn is well-placed for inspection through a telescope. The rings are easy to see, as well as muted cloud stripes in the southern hemisphere. Its largest moon, Titan, is easily seen.
The Ringed Wonder slowly retrogrades in front of Cetus. The starfield is dim, although the apparent westward motion is visible from week to week.
During the night, Saturn is in the southern sky before midnight and sets in the west over two hours before sunrise.
Evening Moon, Taurus
The moon, 88% illuminated, rises about two hours after sunset. An hour later, it is over 10° above the northeast horizon. Compared to last night and this morning, the moon is over 15° to the Pleiades’ lower left. The gap to Aldebaran opens to 11.1°, while the moon’s separation from Elnath is 7.1°.
During the night, the moon is high in the southern sky over four hours before tomorrow’s sunrise. An hour before sunrise, it is high in the western sky. At this phase, the moon is visible during the morning hours, setting about 90 minutes before local noon.
Follow the moon’s place compared to Taurus from morning until evening. Then look for the bright planets before sunrise and Saturn after sunset.
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